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IMAGE  EVALUATION 
TEST  TARGET  (MT-3) 


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K 
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1.0 


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11.25 


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2.5 
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14-  1116 


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Corporation 


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23  WeST  MAIN  sTRECT 
^     WEBSTER,  N.Y.  14580 
(716)  872-4503 


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CIHM/ICMH 

Microfiche 

Series. 


CIHM/ICIVIH 
Collection  de 
microfiches. 


Canadian  Institute  for  Historical  I^Microreproductions 


Institut  Canadian  de  microreproductions  historiques 


1980 


Tachnical  and  Bibliographic  Notas/Notaa  tachniquas  at  bibiiographiquaa 


Tha  Instituta  has  attamptad  to  obtain  tha  bait 
original  copy  avaiiabia  for  filming.  Faaturaa  of  this 
copy  which  may  ba  bibliographically  uniqua, 
which  may  altar  any  of  tha  imagas  in  tha 
raproduction,  or  which  may  significantly  changa 
tha  usual  mathod  of  filming,  ara  chackad  balow. 


D 


D 


D 


D 


□ 


D 


Colourad  covars/ 
Couvartura  da  coulaur 


r~~|   Covars  damagad/ 


Couvartura  andommagia 


Covers  restorad  and/or  laminatad/ 
Couvartura  rastaurte  at/ou  pallicul6a 


I      I   Covar  titia  missing/ 


La  titra  da  couvartura  manqua 


FT]    Coloured  maps/ 


Cartas  giographiquas  an  coulaur 

Coloured  ink  (i.e.  other  than  blue  or  black)/ 
Encre  de  couleur  (i.e.  autre  que  bieue  ou  noire) 


I      I   Coloured  plates  and/or  illustrations/ 


Planches  et/ou  illustrations  en  couleur 

Bound  with  other  material/ 
ReliA  avec  d'autres  documents 


(~7|    Tight  binding  may  cause  shadows  or  distortion 


along  interior  margin/ 

La  reliure  serrie  peut  causer  de  I'ombre  ou  de  la 

distortion  ie  long  da  la  marge  inttrieure 

Blank  leaves  added  during  restoration  may 
appear  within  the  text.  Whenever  possible,  these 
have  been  omitted  from  filming/ 
11  se  peut  que  certaines  pages  blanches  ajoutias 
lors  d'une  restauration  apparaissent  dans  la  texte, 
mais.  lorsque  cela  6tait  possible,  ces  pages  n'ont 
pas  6ti  film^as. 

Additional  comments:/ 
Commentaires  suppidmentaires: 


L'Institut  a  microfilm*  la  mailleur  examplaire 
qu'il  lul  a  AtA  possible  de  se  procurer.  Les  details 
da  cat  axempiaira  qui  sont  paut-Atre  uniques  du 
point  de  vue  bibliographiqua,  qui  peuvent  modifier 
une  image  raproduita.  ou  qui  peuvent  exiger  une 
modification  dans  la  m^thoda  normala  de  filmage 
sont  indiquAs  ci-dessous. 


n 
n 

D 
D 
D 


D 


Coloured  pages/ 
Pages  de  couleur 

Pages  damaged/ 
Pages  endommag6es 

Pages  restored  and/or  laminated/ 
Pages  restaur6as  et/ou  pelliculAes 

Pages  discoloured,  stained  or  foxed/ 
Pages  dicoiorAes,  tachat^es  ou  piquies 

Pages  detached/ 
Pages  d^tach^es 

Showthrough/ 
Transparence 


I      I    Quality  of  print  varies/ 


Quality  inigala  de  I'impression 

Includes  supplementary  material/ 
Comprend  du  materiel  suppiimentaire 

Only  edition  available/ 
Seule  Mition  disponible 


Pages  wholly  or  partially  obscured  by  errata 
slips,  tissues,  etc.,  have  been  refilmed  to 
ensure  the  best  possible  image/ 
Les  pages  totalement  ou  partiellement 
obscurcies  par  un  feuillet  d'errata,  une  pelure. 
etc.,  ont  M  film6es  d  nouveau  de  fagon  d 
obtenir  la  meilleure  image  possible. 


This  item  is  filmed  at  tha  reduction  ratio  checked  below/ 

Ce  document  est  filmi  au  taux  da  reduction  indiquA  ci-dessous. 


10X 

14X 

18X 

22X 

26X 

30X 

J 

12X 


16X 


20X 


24X 


28X 


32X 


ails 

du 

idifier 

une 

nage 


irrata 
to 


pelure, 


n 

32X 


The  copy  filmed  hero  has  baen  reproduced  thanks 
to  the  generosity  of: 

National  Library  of  Canada 


The  images  appearing  here  are  the  best  quality 
possible  considering  the  condition  and  legibility 
of  the  original  copy  and  in  keeping  with  the 
filming  contract  specifications. 


Original  copies  in  printed  paper  covers  are  filmed 
beginning  with  the  front  cover  and  ending  on 
the  last  page  with  a  printed  or  illustrated  impres- 
sion, or  the  back  cover  when  appropriate.  All 
other  original  copies  are  filmed  beginning  on  the 
first  page  with  a  printed  or  illustrated  impres- 
sion, and  ending  on  the  last  page  with  a  printed 
or  illustrated  impression. 


The  last  recorded  frame  on  each  microfiche 
shall  contain  the  symbol  — ^  (meaning  "CON- 
TINUED"), or  the  symbol  V  (meaning  "END"), 
whichever  applies. 

Maps,  plates,  charts,  etc.,  may  be  filmed  at 
different  reduction  ratios.  Those  too  large  to  be 
entirely  included  in  one  exposure  are  filmed 
beginning  in  the  upper  left  hand  corner,  left  to 
right  and  top  to  bottom,  as  many  frames  as 
required.  The  following  diagrams  illustrate  the 
method: 


L'exemplaire  film*  fut  reproduit  grAce  dla 
gAnArosit*  da: 

Bibliothique  nationale  du  Canada 


Las  images  suivantes  ont  At*  reproduites  avec  le 
plus  grand  soin,  compte  tenu  de  la  condition  et 
de  la  nettet*  de  l'exemplaire  film*,  et  en 
conformit*  avec  les  conditions  du  contrat  de 
fllmage. 

Les  exemplaires  originaux  dont  la  couverture  en 
papier  est  imprim*e  sont  film*s  en  commen^ant 
par  le  premier  plat  et  en  terminant  soit  par  ia 
derniire  page  qui  comporte  une  empreinte 
d'impression  ou  d'illustration.  soit  par  le  second 
plat,  salon  le  cas.  Tous  les  autres  exemplaires 
originaux  sont  film*s  en  commen^ant  par  la 
premiere  page  qui  comporte  une  empreinte 
d'impression  ou  d'illustration  et  en  terminant  par 
la  dernidre  page  qui  comporte  une  telle 
empreinte. 

Un  des  symboies  suivants  apparattra  sur  la 
derniAre  image  de  cheque  microfiche,  selon  le 
cas:  le  symbols  — ►  signifie  "A  SUIVRE ',  le 
symbols  V  signifie  "FIN". 

Les  cartes,  planches,  tableaux,  etc.,  peuvent  6tre 
filmis  d  des  taux  de  reduction  diffirents. 
Lorsque  le  document  est  trop  grand  pour  Atre 
reproduit  en  un  seul  ciich*.  il  est  film*  *  partir 
de  Tangle  8up*rieur  gauche,  de  gauche  *  droits, 
et  de  haut  en  bas,  en  prenant  le  nombre 
d'images  nucessaire.  Les  diagrammes  suivants 
illustrent  la  m*thode. 


1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

aitlp:tons' 


GUIDE-BOOK  TO  ALASKA 


AND 


THE   NORTHWEST  COAST 


INCLUDINQ 

THE  SHORES  OF  WASHINUTON,   BRITISH  COLUMBIA, 

80UTHEASTKRN  ALASKA,  TIIK  ALEUTIAN  ANM) 

THE  SEAL  ISLANDS.  THE  BERING  AND  TIIK  ARCTIC  COASTS 


BT 

ELIZA   RUHAMAH   SCIDMORE 

AUTHOR  OF  "AUAHKA:    ITS  HOl'THERN  ("OAST  AND  THE  HITKAN   ARCHIPRLAnO,' 
"JINRIKIHUA   UAYS  IN  JAPAN,"   AND   "  WKHTWARI)  TO  TUE   FAR   EAHT.'' 


H'lTH  MAPS  AND  ilAXY  ILLVSTIiATIONS 


NEW    YORK 
D.   APPLETON   AND  COMPANY 

1893 


CopvnioHT,  1803, 
By  D.   APPLETON  AND  COMPANY. 


CONTENTS. 


PAGE 

Introduction 1 

THE  PUGET  SOUND  COUNTRY. 

The  Pacific  Forcft  Reserve  and  Mt.  Rainier 6 

The  International  Boundary  Line 12 

VANcotvEB  Island 14 

Tides 16 

Tub  Inland  Sea 17 

From  Victoria  to  Qneen  Charlotte  Sound 17 

Tlie  Vicinity  of  Nanaimo 18 

Tlie  UpiK'r  End  of  the  Gulf  of  Georgia 19 

St'ymour  Narrows  or  Yaculta  Rapids— The  Great  Malstrom        .        .  21 

The  Head  of  Vancouver  Inland 22 

FhOM   (jUKEN   ClIAItLOTTE   TO   MiLBANK   SoUND 28 

Nakwakto  Rapids 24 

The  Coast  of  British  Columbia 25 

Fkom  Milbank  Sound  to  Dixon  Entrance 27 

(iardner  Caiml  or  Inlet 28 

The  Skeena  River 29 

The  Tsinisian  Peninsula 31 

Nass  River,  Observatory  Inlet,  and  Portland  Canal      .        .        .        .33 

Tub  Queen  Charlotte  Islands 34 

TheHaidas 37 

ALASKA. 

Climate  or  Southeastern  Ala»<ka 40 

The  Native  Race  op  Southeastern  Alaska— The  Tlinqits      .  43 

Tlinglt  Customs 45 

The  International  Boundary  Line 48 

The  Southern  Islands 51 

Mary  Island  Customs  District 52 

New  Metlakahtla 53 

Metlakautla 54 

The  Na-a  Country 55 

The  Pacif    Salmon 56 

Salmon  Canneriets 57 


IV 


CONTENTS. 


PAOK 

The  Riytllaoioedo  Lakes  and  Behx  Canal 58 

Prince  of  Wales  Island 60 

Fort  Wranoell 6S 

The  Htikine  River 68 

Itinerary  of  the  Stiklne  River 70 

Mining  Regions  of  the  Htikine 72 

Inteniatiunai  Boundary  Line  on  the  Stikine 78 

From  Sumner  Strait  to  Prince  Frederick  Sound  via  Wranoell 

Narrows 78 

Along  Prince  Frederick  Sound 74 

The  Thunder  Bay  Glacier 75 

Glacial  Theory  of  the  Natives 76 

Kupreanoff  and  Kuiu  Islands,  the  Land  of  Kakes        ....  77 

From  Cape  Fanshawe  to  Taku  Inlet,  Suuckb  and  Sum  Dum  Bays  .  78 

Taku  Inlet  and  the  Taku  (ilaciers 80 

The  Harris  Mining  District— tTuneau  and  its  Vicinity  ....  82 

The  Silver  Bow  Basin  Mines 88 

The  Largest  (Quartz-Mill  in  the  World 85 

Admiralty  Island H7 

Fisheries  of  the  Region 88 

Alono  Chatuam  Strait  and  Lynn  Canal 00 

The  Chilkat  Country  and  the  Passes  to  the  Yukon       ...  92 

The  Great  Tribe  of  the  Tlingit  Nation flS 

To  the  Yukon  River  and  Mining  Camps 05 

Glacier  Bay 97 

Discovery  and  Exploration  of  Glacier  Bay 97 

Indian  Traditions 98 

Scientists'  Camps 99 

Itinerary  of  the  Bay  and  Inlet too 

Muir  Inlet  and  the  Great  Muir  Glacier 100 

The  Lateral  Moraines 103 

The  Rate  of  Recession 104 

The  Ascent  of  Mt.  Wright  to  the  Hanging  Gardens  and  Mountain- 
Goat  Pastures 105 

On  the  Mainland  Shore  of  Cross  Sound 100 

The  Chlcagoflf  Island  Shores 106 

From  Chatham  Strait  to  the  Ocean  by  Peril  or  Pooibshi  Straits,  108 

Baranof  Island  and  the  Russian  Settlements 110 

The  Puichase  of  Russian  America 112 

The  Transfer  of  Russian  America  to  the  United  States  .113 

An  Abandoned  Territory 114 

Sitka,  tub  Capital  of  the  Territory  of  Alaska 115 

Russian  Orthodox  Church  of  St.  Michael 117 

The  Indian  River  Park 119 

The  Indian  Village 120 

The  SitkauB  and  their  Records 120 

The  Ascent  of  Verstovol 122 


CONTENTS. 


PAOB 

ExcnreionB  in  the  Bay  and  Vicinity  of  Sitka 12S 

The  Aticent  of  Mt.  Edgccumbe 124 

Silver  Bay  and  the  Sitica  Mining  DiHtrict 126 

The  BARANor  Shore  boutu  or  Sitka 127 

The  White  Sulphur  Hot  Springs 128 

**To  Westward"  from   Sitka   to  Ukalahka,   along   tub  Conti- 
nental Shore 120 

From  Sitka  to  Yakutat 190 

Mt.  St.  Eliatt 1%2 

Continental  Alaska 188 

Prince  William'ti  Sound  and  its  Great  Glaciers 184 

Cook's  Inlet  and  the  Kenai  Peninsula 185 

Tides 187 

Kadiak  and  the  Great  Salmon  Canneries 137 

The  Greatest  Salmon  Stream  in  the  World 180 

The  Shumagin  Islands  and  the  Cod  Fisheries 130 

The  Aliaska  Peninsula 140 

The  Aleutian  Islands 141 

Excursions  from  Unalaska 143 

The  Bering  Lea  and  Shores 144 

The  Pribylov  or  Seal  Islands 146 

The  Sea  Island  Leases 146 

Callorhinus  Ursinus,  the  Fur  Seal 146 

The  Bering  Sea  Question 147 

Other  Islands  in  Bering  Sea 140 

Berinp  Strait 140 

In  the  Arctic  Ocean 150 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS. 


rACIMO  I'AOB 

Road  WAT  in  Stanlkt  Parr,  Vancouvbr 14 

iNniANf,  NGAK  Nrw  Wehtminstkr 17 

TlIK  (iOROE  or  THE  HOMATUCO 10 

Johnston K  Htrait 8S 

A   IlAIDA  TOTEM-POLB 87 

TLiN<iiT  Woman 44 

iliTM,  OR  Thunder  Glacier 75 

Juneau 8S 

The  Treaowell  Mine,  DouuLAHa  Island 86 

Front  of  Muir  Glacier  and  Mt.  Case,  from  West  Moraine    .       .  101 

View  from  End  of  Sainovar  Hills 110 

Sai.mon-Berrt  Market,  Sitka 118 

The  Old  Fur  Warehouse,  Greek  Church,  and  Peak  of  Mt.  Verh- 

Tovoi,  Sitka 121 

rusTOM-IIousE,  Castle,  and  Barracks,  Sitka 124 

Mt.  Suisualdin 142 

MAPS. 

Glaciers  of  Mt.  Rainier 0 

General  Map  of  Alaska 39 

The  International  Boundary  Line 51 

Chilkat  and  Chilkoot  Bays 92 

Glacier  Bay 97 

The  Coast  from  Sandy  Bay  to  Cape  Edward 123 

Mt.  St.  Elias  Region 132 

Chief  Routes  of  Alaskan  Explorers 134 

The  Route  of  the  Alaska  Excursion  Steamers    .       .       .        In  Pocket 


TABLE  OF   DISTANCES. 

NAUTICAL  MILKH. 

San  Franc'irtco  to  Victoria,  B.  C 750 

San  Francisco  to  Tacoraa 860 

San  Krancii^co  to  Sitlca  (outside  passage),  l,fil4  statute  miles,  or  1,298 

San  Francisco  to  Kadiak 1,760 

San  Francisco  to  Unaluskn  direct 2,413  statute  miles,  or  2,068 

Tacoma  to  Seattle 26 

Seattle  to  Port  Townsend 88^ 

Port  Townsend  to  Victoria 31 

Victoria  to  Active  Pass 38 

Victoria  to  Nanaimo 78 

Victoria  to  Seymour  Narrows. 160 

Victoria  to  Tongass  Narrows  (Kichikan) 660 

Tongass  Narrows  to  Port  ('hester 16 

Tongass  Narrows  to  Loring 24 

lioring  to  Ycss  Bay 22 

Loring  to  Fort  Wrangell 88 

Fort  Wrangell  to  (llenora,  on  Stikine  River 160 

Fort  Wrangell  to  Juneau 146 

Fort  Wrangell  to  Sitka 326 

Juneau  to  Douglass  Island  (Tread well  Wharf) 2| 

Juneau  to  Berner's  Bay 46 

Juneau  to  Chilkat 89 

Juneau  to  Mulr  Glacier 160 

Juneau  to  Killisnof^ 104 

Juneau  to  Sitka 176 

Chilkat  to  Bartlett's  Bay 98 

Bartlett's  Bay  to  Muir  Glacier 30 

Bartlett's  Bay  to  end  of  Glacier  Bay 60 

Muir  Glacier  to  Tacoma 1,218 

Muir  Glacier  to  Sitka 160 

Killisnoo  to  Sitka 72 

Sitka  to  Silver  Bay 12 

Sitko  to  Hot  Sulphur  Springs 16 

Sitka  to  Mt.  Edgecumbe 13 

Sitka  to  Chilkat 180 

Sitka  to  Yakutat 200 

Sitka  to  Kadiak 660 

Sitka  to  Unalaska  (1,283  statute  miles) 1,100 

Sitka  to  Tacoma 1,878 

Unalaska  to  St.  Paul,  Pribylov  Islands 200 

St.  Paul  to  Sitka 1,600 

St.  Paul  to  San  Francisco 2,300 


JH, 


or 


or 


nCAL  MILEH. 

850 

1,298 

1,760 

2,068 

25 

88^ 

31 

88 

78 

150 

660 

16 

24 

22 

88 

160 

146 

326 

46 

89 

160 

104 

176 

98 

30 

60 

1,218 

160 

72 

12 

16 

13 

180 

200 

660 

1,100 

1,878 

200 

1,600 

2,300 


INTRODUCTION. 

The  Northwest  Const  ia  the  jrenoral  torm  applied  by  liwt  cen- 
tury explorers  and  diplomats  to  all  that  part  of  the  continent  of  North 
America  lyinj;  between  the  Columbia  Hiver  and  Yakutat  !' ;  ,  or  between 
its  landmarks,  Mts.  Rainier  and  St.  Elias.  The  State  of  W  ashington, 
the  province  of  British  Columbia,  and  the  southeastern  h  Sitkan  dis- 
trict of  Alaska  occupy  each  a  third  of  this  coast.  TV«  l)ulk  .f  the  Ter- 
ritorj-  of  Alaska  lies  beyond  Mt.  S".  Elius.  Its  coast  oft'c'S  little  of 
interest  or  a  i  \ ion  beyond  the  Alia^^ka  Peninsula,  and  'lie  interior  is 
sparsolv  inhabited. 

Southeastern  Alaska  is  the  only  portion  of  the  vast  Territory 
now  accessible  to  tourists  and  pleasure  travellers,  and  the  Alaska  mail 
and  excursion  steamer  routes  include  a  tour  throuj^h  the  archipel'^go 
fringing  the  Northwest  Coast  and  sheltering  an  inside  passage  over  a 
thousand  miles  in  length. 

The  Coast  Range  presents  a  bold  front  to  the  o  can  from  the  Colum- 
bia river  northward,  and  the  Columbian  and  Alexan<ler  Archipelagoes  are 
half-submerged  peaks  and  ranges — the  veritable  "  Sea  of  Mountains." 
Glaciers  gem  all  these  Conlilleran  slopes,  and  the  tide-water  glaciers  at 
the  head  of  Alaskan  inlets  arc  paralleled  only  in  the  strait  of  Magellan, 
in  Iceland,  Greenland,  and  polar  regions.  The  scenery  is  sublime  be- 
yond description,  and  there  is  almost  a  monotony  of  such  magnificence 
n  the  cruise  along  the  Northwest  Coast.  The  mountains  are  covered 
with  the  densest  forests,  all  undisturbed  game  preserves,  the  waters 
teem  with  hundreds  of  varieties  of  fish,  and  the  northern  moors  are  the 
homes  of  great  flocks  of  aquatic  birds.  The  native  people  are  the  most 
interesting  study  of  ethnologists,  and  totemism  in  a  living  and  advanced 
stage  may  be  studied  on  the  spot.  Settlements  are  few  and  far  be- 
tween, mining  and  fish-packing  the  chief  industries. 

The  climate  of  the  Northwest  Coast  is  far  milder  than  that  of  the 
Northeast  Coast  of  the  continent.  The  Knro  Siwo,  the  Japan  or 
Gulf  Stream  of  the  Pacific,  flowing  northward  from  the  Southern  Ocean, 
follows  the  line  of  the  Aleutian  Islands,  makes  a  great  loop  in  the 


\\\ 


v 


I 


'! 


II. 

'l' ■ 

■  ;i' 

•;lt 


2 


INTRODUCTION. 


Gulf  of  Alaska,  and  >lows  southward  along  the  coast.  It  greatly  modi- 
fies the  climate,  bends  the  isothermal  lines  northward,  and  makes  cli- 
mate and  temperature  depend  upon  distance  from  the  warm  Kuro  Siwo 
rather  than  on  distance  from  the  equator.  The  high  mountain  ranges 
condense  the  soft,  warm  vapours  accompanying  the  Japan  Stream,  and 
the  annual  precipitation  is  greater  than  on  any  other  part  of  the  conti- 
nent. The  rainfall  averages  from  80  to  140  in.  along  the  coast,  but  the 
least  mountain  barrier,  as  with  the  Olympics  on  the  Washin  ton  coast, 
reduces  the  precipitation  to  one  half  on  the  lee  side. 

Steamship  lines  conveying  United  States  and  Royal  mails  give  fre- 
quent communication  throughout  the  year  with  all  the  Northwest 
Coast  and  are  availed  of  by  pleasure  travellers.  They  offer  unknown 
delights  of  ocean  travel,  and  from  deck  chairs  tourists  view  near  at 
hand  the  tide-water  glaciers  and  the  highest  mountains  of  the  conti- 
nent, pursuing  the  placid  channels  of  water-floored  canons  for  a  fort- 
night with  scarce  a  ripple  encountered.  As  a  yachting  region  it  offers 
more  than  the  Hebrides  or  the  Norwegian  coast. 

RAIL  AND  STEAMER  ROUTES  TO  THE  NORTHWEST. 
( See  Route  Map,  in  jiocket,  last  cover.) 

Puget  Sound  is  the  usual  point  of  departure  for  Alaska,  and  is 
reached  from  the  East  by  five  great  transcontinental  railway  lines :  by 
the  Southern  Pacific,  from  Ogden  or  San  Francisco  via  Sacramento  and 
Mt.  Shasta  to  Portland,  and  thence  to  Tacoma  and  Seattle ;  by  the 
Union  Pacific,  from  Omaha  and  Ogden  direct  to  Portland,  Tacoma,  and 
Seattle ;  by  the  Northern  Pacific,  from  St.  Paul  via  the  Yellowstone 
Park  to  Tacoma  and  Seattle;  by  the  Great  Northern,  from  Duluth, 
Winnipeg,  or  St.  Paul  to  Everett  on  Puget  Sound  and  Seattle ;  and  by 
the  Canadian  Pacific,  from  Montreal  via  the  Great  Lakes,  Winnipeg, 
and  the  Canadian  National  Park  to  Vancouver  and  thence  to  Victoria 
or  Seattle.  The  excursion  companies  in  Eastern  cities  usually  choose 
different  routes  in  going  and  returning,  giving  their  patrons  opportunity 
to  visit  in  this  way  both  the  Yellowstone  and  the  Canadian  National 
Parks. 

Alaska  tourists  reach  Victoria  and  Puget  Sound  ports  by  sea  by 
the  steamers  of  the  Pacific  Coast  Steamship  Company  (Groodall,  Per- 
kins &  Co.),  from  San  Francisco.  This  same  company  dispatches 
semi-monthly  mail  steamers  from  Tacoma  to  Sitka  the  year  round. 
The  Alaska  mail  steamers  have  accommodations  for  about  60  passen* 


INTRODUCTION. 


8 


acoma,  and 


gers,  take  from  14  to  18  diiys  for  the  voyage  of  2,800  to  3,000  miles 
from  Tacoma  to  Sitka  and  return,  calling  at  Victoria,  Nanaimo,  Mary 
Island,  Loring,  Fort  Wrangell,  Juneau,  Killisnoo,  and  at  many  can- 
neries and  out-of-the-way  places  to  receive  and  deliver  freight  dur- 
ing the  summer  weeks.  A  day  is  given  to  the  Muir  Glacier  in 
Glacier  Bay  in  the  tourist  season.  The  excursion  steamer  Queen,  of 
the  P.  C.  S.  S.  Co.,  makes  senu-monthly  trips  during  June,  July,  and 
August  each  year.  It  is  scheduled  to  make  the  tour  from  Tacoma  and 
return  in  12  days.  It  has  accommodations  for  250  passengers,  carries 
almost  no  freight,  is  not  bound  by  a  mail  contract,  and  arranges  its 
course  and  movements  to  reach  the  places  of  interest  at  most  con- 
venient hours.  It  visits  the  Taku  as  well  as  the  Muir  Glacier.  These 
steamers  of  U.  S.  register  make  no  other  stops  in  British  Columbia 
after  coaling  at  Xanaimo.  Fare,  $100  for  the  round  trip  from  Ta- 
coma. 

The  Canadian  Pacific  Navigation  Company^  of  Victoria,  dispatches 
semi-monthly  mail  steamers  from  Victoria  to  Fort  Simpson  and  way 
ports  the  year  round.  When  inducements  are  offered  they  visit  the 
Queen  Charlotte  Islands,  but  do  not  cross  the  Alaska  line.  The  C.  P. 
N.  Co.  arrange  for  one  or  more  excursions  from  Victoria  to  Sitka  and 
return  each  summer,  a  steamer  accommodatine  from  130  to  150  pas- 
sengers, visiting  the  larger  Indian  villages  and  settlements  of  the  Brit- 
ish Columbia  coast,  its  principal  fiords,  and  the  chief  points  of  interest 
in  Alaska.  Passengers  cannot  land  in  Alaska  from  ships  of  British 
register  save  at  ports  where  U.  S.  customs  officers  are  stationed.  Fare, 
$95  for  the  round  trip  from  either  Victoria  or  Vancouver  to  Sitka  and 
return. 

The  steamer  accommodations  by  either  line  are  first  class  in  every 
respect — the  excursion  steamers,  catering  to  an  expensive  class  of 
pleasure  travel,  offering  most  luxuries  and  comforts.  As  all  the  voy- 
age is  in  smooth,  landlocked  waters,  save  the  short  interval  of  Queen 
Charlotte  Sound,  /ioa-sickness  is  not  to  be  anticipated  by  any  one.  In 
the  nightless  days  of  the  northern  summers  little  is  lost  by  darkness. 

Private  steamers  may  be  chartered  at  San  Francisco,  Tacoma, 
Seattle,  or  Victoria  at  rates  varying  from  $200  to  $500  per  day.  There 
are  few  pilots,  however,  able  to  take  steamers  the  length  of  the  coast, 
and  sailing  yachts  are  helpless  in  the  narrow,  draughty  channels, 
swept  by  strong  tidal  currents,  or  on  the  open  coast  with  its  rocks, 
ledges,  and  inshore  currents.    Launches  with  sleeping  accommodations 


4  INTRODUCTION. 

for  4  or  10  may  be  chartered  for  hunting  p.nd  exploring  cruises  at 
Juneau,  at  the  Treadwell  mine  on  Douglas  Island,  and  sometimes  at 
Loring,  Chilkat,  and  Killiflnoo,  at  prices  ranging  from  |20  to  |40  per 
day,  according  to  size  and  fuel  used.  Launches  chartered  for  long 
cruises  can  meet  the  mail  steamers  at  Mary  Island  or  Fort  Wrangel 
if  desired.  Those  intending  to  cainp  or  cruise  in  launches  should 
take  the  greater  part  of  their  provisions  and  outfit  from  the  Sound. 
All  commodities  aru  naturullv  dearer  in  the  Alaska  settlements.  A 
few  vegetables,  with  unlimited  fish  and  game,  may  be  had  at  any  set- 
tlement ;  fresh  beef  at  Juneau  only.  Indian  canoes  are  rented  from 
i?2  per  day  upward,  each  oarsman  paid  by  the  day  in  addition. 

Tourists  make  the  usual  preparation  for  an  ocean  voyage,  carrying 
their  own  deck  chairs,  heavy  wraps,  and  rugs.  The  warmest  wraps 
are  needed  on  cloudy  and  rainy  days,  and  while  the  steamers  lie  off  the 
tide-water  glaciers.  Every  provision  should  be  made  for  the  frequent 
rains,  although  on  many  trips  not  a  single  rainy  day  is  .  ecorded.  Rub- 
ber shoes,  boots,  and  leggings,  waterproof  coats  and  cloaks,  add  much 
to  the  certain  comfort  and  enjoyment  of  the  voyage.  Alpenstocks  for 
the  glacier  may  be  rented  from  the  porters.  Spiked  shoes,  ice  axes, 
and  ropes  arc  not  needed. 

Unitad  States  money  is  current  everywhere,  and  the  Indians  greatly 
prefer  silver  coin  to  gold  or  notes  in  any  dealings  with  whites.  All  bag- 
gage of  travellers  is  subject  to  a  customs  examination  on  crossing  the 
boundary  between  Washington  and  British  Columbia.  The  frequent 
communication  with  China  causes  extra  vigilance  by  health  officers  at 
Victoria  and  Port  Townsend  for  small-pox  cases,  and  the  traveller  may 
be  saved  untold  annoyance  and  delays  if  provided  with  a  vaccination 
certificate  before  embarking.  While  cholera  is  present  in  Chinese 
ports  every  summer,  its  germs  have  never  survived  the  long  ocean  voy- 
age in  the  quarter  century  of  steam  communication  between  our  Pacific 
coast  and  Asiatic  ports. 

The  plan  of  this  book  follows  as  nearly  as  possible  The  Cana- 
dian Guide  Books,  Parts  I  and  II.  Names  of  places  and  objects  of 
importance  are  printed  in  large-faced  type  or  in  Italics  ;  the  names 
of  railway  and  steamship  lines  are  printed  in  full  once,  and  abbreviated 
by  initial  letters  whenever  repeated :  Hudson's  Bay  Co.  becomes  H.  B. 
Co.,  and  the  points  of  the  compass  are  indicated  by  the  initials  N.  for 
north,  S.  for  south,  etc. 


f  •> 


ii 


THE   GUIDE  BOOK  TO   ALASKA. 


THE  PUOET  SOUND  GOUNTRT. 

The  first  section  of  the  Northwest  Coast,  including  western  Wash- 
ington, is  80  fully  described  in  Appletons'  General  Guide,  that  but  few 
other  references  are  needed  for  the  Alaska  tourist,  who  begins  and  ends 
his  voyagings  here. 

Tacoma,  the  county  seat  of  Pierce  County,  population  36,006  by  cen- 
sus of  1890,  is  situated  on  a  bluff  180  ft.  high,  overLjking  Puyallup  or 
Commencement  Bay,  as  named  by  Commander  Wilkes  in  1841,  who  there 
commenced  his  surveys  of  the  Sound.  The  first  house  was  built  in 
1862.  The  general  passenger  station  of  the  N.  P.  R.  R.  is  on  the  edge 
of  the  bluff  at  the  intersection  of  Pacific  Ave.  All  baggage  checked  to 
"  Tacoma  "  is  left  at  this  station,  unless  checked  to  "  Tacoma  Wharf," 
the  branch  station  a  mile  below  at  the  water^s  edge.  Sound,  Alaska,  and 
ocean  steamers  depart  from  this  wharf.  Electric  cars  connect  the  two 
stations,  and  there  is  an  excellent  cab  and  omnibus  system  with  a  mod- 
erate tariff  posted  in  each  vehicle.  The  Tacoma,  on  the  edge  of  the 
bluff  and  The  Tourist,  the  nillion  dollar  hotel  of  the  Tacoma  Land  Co. 
are  the  leading  hotels — rates  $3  per  day  and  upward.  Smaller  hotels 
on  the  European  plan,  and  lodging  houses,  are  numerous,  and  restau- 
rants are  found  on  Pacific  Ave.  and  on  the  numbered  streets  leading 
from  it.  The  large  hotels  take  on  the  character  of  watering-place  re- 
sorts in  the  summer  season,  and  the  arrival  and  anticipated  departure 
of  Alaska  steamerb  fill  them  to  overflowing. 

The  steamers  of  the  P.  C.  S.  S.  Co.  leave  Tacoma  every  five  days  for  San 
Francisco  and  fortnightly  for  Alaska.  The  Puget  Sound  and  Hawaiian 
Traffic  Company  dispatch  a  monthly  steamer  to  Honolulu.  The  North- 
em  Pacific  Company  dispatch  a  steamer  monthly  for  Hong-Kong  and 
Yokohoma.  There  is  a  daily  steamer  to  Victoria,  touching  at  the  prin- 
cipal cities  on  the  Sound,  and  almost  hourly  communication  by  boat  and 


.  >> 


6 


THE  PUGET  SOUND  COUNTRY. 


train  with  Seattle  30  miles  distant.  Many  excursions  invite  the  Alaska 
tourist  who  bas  a  few  days  at  command.  The  great  hop  ranches  around 
Fuyallup  may  be  visited  by  carriage,  by  trains  of  the  N.  P.  R.,  and  by 
the  Lake  Park  Motor  Co.'s  trains.  Puyallup  Valley  is  one  of  the  garden 
spots  of  the  State,  and  in  September  the  river  banks  are  lined  with  the 
canoes  and  tents  of  the  Indian  hop-pickers,  who  come  from  the  Colum- 
bia plains  and  even  the  Alaska  islands.  It  is  one  of  the  points  of  de- 
parture for  mountain-climbers  who  essay  the  ascent  of  the  great  peak 
of  Mt.  Rainier,  now  surrounded  by  a  Government  forest  reserve. 

The  Pacific  Forest  Reserve  and  Mt.  Rainier. 

This  park  of  967,680  acres  was  created  by  proclamation  of  Presi- 
dent Harrison,  February  20,  1893.  Forty-two  townships  of  Pierce, 
Lewis,  Yakima,  and  Kittetas  Counties  were  withdrawn  from  entry  to 


^'        QLA0IER8 

OF 

MOUNT  BAINIEB 

From  the  "Northen 


A    ■>>•///-       '        ^J^%/'-'v  JF  '^    Wii  rrom  me  "nonnern 

■yV   ''/A,  ^tiljj'--.^'^  ^5^fT ■  , ^/leTootOOsff  <     Tnuuoontlnentol  Surrey. 

IlI»#^/^  1\|i;         by  bailey  WILLIS. 


1.  Liberty  Cap,  14,282.    2,  Dome,  14,.359.    3.  South  Peak.    4.  Longmire  Spre. 
5.  Paradise  Valley.    6.  Gibraltar.    7.  Eagle  Cliff.    *  Crater. 

protect  the  head  waters  of  the  Puyallup,  Carbon,  White,  Natchez, 
Tietan,  Nisqually,  and  Cowlitz  Rivers  which  flow  from  the  glaciers  radi- 
ating from  the  summit  of  Mt.  Rainier  like  the  spokes  of  a  wheel.    The 


UL 


THE   PUOET   SOUND   COUNTRY. 


park  raeasures  36  miles  from  E.  to  W.  and  42  miles  from  N.  to  S. 
There  are  trails  and  waggon  roads  to  the  points  of  interest  on  the  W. 
and  S.  side. 

MU  Rainier  (14,444  ft.)  is  the  highest  peak  in  the  Cascade  Range, 
chief  in  a  group  of  volcanoes,  and  rises  abruptly  from  the  low  forest 
lands  covering  the  55  miles  between  its  base  and  Puget  Sound.  Van- 
couver saw  it  from  Marrowstone  Point,  opposite  Port  Townsend,  May 
10,  1792,  and  named  it  for  his  friend  Rear-Admiral  Rainier,  one  of  the 
Lords  of  the  Admiralty.  It  was  smoking  splendidly  when  Fremont  left 
the  Columbia  in  1842,  the  Pathfinder  alluding  to  it  as  Regnier,  and,  with 
many,  l)elieving  that  it  had  been  named  for  Lieutenant  Regnier,  of  Mar- 
chand's  expedition  (1791). 

The  Puyallup  Indians  call  the  peak  Ta?i-ko-bah,  the  Nisquallys  Tah- 
ho-mah,  the  Dtiwamish  Ta-ko-bct,  all  meaning  the  snowy  or  snow  moun- 
tain. For  years  the  local  and  landsman's  name  was  Tacoma,  naviga- 
tors using  the  chart  name  of  Rainier.  The  rivalry  between  the  cities  of 
Seattle  and  Tacoma  made  the  mountain's  name  a  subject  of  bitter  strife, 
the  N.  P.  Co.  printing  it  as  Tacoma  in  all  maps  and  publications.  In 
1890  theU.  S.  Board  of  Geographic  Names  decided  that  Rainier  must 
stand  on  all  Government  charts,  maps,  and  publications,  Vancouver's 
charts  having  been  accepted  and  used  as  authority  for  a  century. 

The  peak  is  a  symmetrical  pyramid,  as  viewed  from  Seattle ;  a 
double  peak  from  Tacoma  ;  and  from  Ol^mpia  or  Yelm  Prairie  on  the 
line  of  the  N.  P.,  south  of  Tacoma,  it  shows  its  three  peaks  in  outline 
like  Mt.  Fairwcather  and  Mt.  St.  Elias. 

The  first  attempt  to  climb  the  great  peak  was  made  by  Dr.  William 
Frazer  Tolmie,  surgeon  of  the  H.  B.  Co.'s  Fort  Nisqually,  in  1833,  and 
resulted  in  his  reaching  Tolmie  Peak  by  way  of  Crater  Lake  on  the 
N.  W.  slope.  Lieutenant  A.  V  Kautz  reached  the  South  Peak  in  1867  ; 
Messrs.  ^^  ".  Van  Trump  and  Hazard  Stevens  reached  the  Dome  or 
Crater  Peak  in  August,  1870 ;  and  Messrs.  A.  D.  VV^ilson  and  S.  F. 
Emmons,  U.  S.  Geological  Survey,  in  October,  1870.  At  the  close  of 
1892,  38  climbers  were  known  to  have  reached  the  summit,  all  ascend- 
ing by  the  Gibraltar  Trail  on  the  S.  side,  save  Warner  Fobes  and  two 
companions  who  climbed  the  ridge  on  tlie  N.  E.  side  by  the  White 
River  Glacier,  in  1884,  and  George  Bayley  and  P.  B.  Van  Trump  on  the 
W.  side  in  1892.  One  woman,  Miss  Fay  Fuller,  reached  the  summit 
August  10,  1890. 

Eight  days  is  the  least  time  in  which  an  experienced  climber  can 
make  the  round  trip  from  either  Seattle  or  Tacoma  to  the  summit  of 
Mt.  Rainier  and  return.    P.  B.  Van  Trump,  the  veteran  guide,  lives  at 


Ill;; 


r 


It 


fliiili! 


Hi,: 


I 


8 


THE  PUOET  SOUND  CODNTRY. 


Yelm  Prairie ;  George  Driver,  guide,  may  be  communicated  with  through 
77^  Tacomaj  Tacoma;  and  Mr.  E.  C.  Ingraharo,  the  Seattle  publisher, 
will  advise  any  intending  climbers  who  may  appeal  to  him  there.  Eton- 
ville  (P.  0.)  is  the  point  of  real  departure,  and  may  be  reached  by  daily 
stages  or  hacks  from  Puyallup,  Roy,  or  Yelm  Prairie  stations  on  the 
N.  P.  R.,  either  route  involving  a  ride  of  25  or  30  miles.  The  next 
stage  is  18  miles  to  Kemahan's  Palisade  Farm  in  Succotash  (Su-ho-tas, 
"  black  raspberrj  ")  Valley.  A  third  start  is  made  before  sunrise,  in 
order  to  ford  the  Rainier  Fork  of  the  NIsqually  (6  miles  beyond)  before 
the  melting  ice  and  snow  raise  the  glacial  torrent. 

Longmire'a  hot  soda  springs  hotel  is  headquarters  for  campers  and 
climbers,  and  offers  pliiin  shelter  and  comforts.  A  horse  trail  leads 
thence  4  miles  to  the  foot  of  the  Nisqually  Glacier,  the  Nisqually 
River  emerging  from  an  ice  cavern  in  its  front.  A  switchback  trail  of 
2  miles  leads  1,200  ft.  up  the  front  of  the  Nisqually  Bluff  and  ends  in 
Paradise  Valley  (5,700  ft.),  a  park  at  the  snow-line  carpeted  with  wild  flow- 
ers. Good  climbers  may  leave  their  horses  at  the  foot  of  the  glacier,  climb 
and  cross  the  ice  to  Paradise  Valley,  which  is  6  miles  from  the  summit. 
It  is  one  day's  hard  climb  with  creepers  or  lumbermen's  "  calks,"  over 
ice  and  snow  to  the  foot  of  Gibraltar  Rock  (11,000  ft.),  where  the  night 
is  spent.  An  early  start  is  made  to  cross  the  dangerous  ledges  on  Gi- 
braltar's face  and  cut  steps  up  a  steep  ice  cliflf  before  the  day's  avalanches 
begin,  and  the  twin  craters  with  a  common  central  rim  upholding  the 
snowy  Dome  or  Crater  Peak  (14,444  ft.)  may  be  reached  before  noon. 
Climbers  usually  aim  to  spend  the  night  in  the  ice  caves  formed  by  the 
sulphur  vent-holes  in  the  crater.  Food  is  warmed  over  steam  jets,  and 
with  lights  the  ice  caverns  may  be  explored  for  hundreds  of  feet.  The 
larger  crater  is  three  quarters  of  a  mile  in  diameter,  and  both  but  vent- 
holes  of  a  vaster  cone  of  preglaeial  days.  The  Liberty  Cap,  Tacoma, 
or  North  Peak  (14,000  ft.),  the  apparent  summit  seen  from  Tacoma,  is  2 
miles  distant  from  South  Peak,  and  the  true  or  Crater  Peak  iies  mid- 
way. The  height,  14,444  ft.,  as  given  in  Gannett's  Dictionary  of  Alti- 
tudes, is  the  result  of  triangulations  from  a  base-line  on  the  Sound 
measured  by  Prof.  George  C.  Davidson.  Mr.  A.  D.  Wilson,  of  the  North- 
ern Transcontinental  Survey,  gives  14,900  ft.  as  the  result  of  over  one 
hundred  trigonometrical  determinations  from  the  E.  side  of  the  moun- 
tain. 

A  shorter  and  easier  Rainier  excursion  may  be  made  by  the  Bailey 
Willis  trail  from  Wilkeson  station  on  the  N.  P.  R.  to  Observation  Point 


/I 


THE   PUOET   SOUND  COUNTRY. 


9 


at  tlic  head  of  the  Edmunds  Glacier,  named  for  the  Hon.  George  F. 
Edirmnds,  of  Vermont,  acting  Vice-President  of  the  United  States  at 
the  time  of  his  visit,  in  1883.  The  Point  (10,00()  ft.)  commands  as  ex- 
ttMisivc  a  view  as  the  summit  save  to  S.  E.,  and  the  black  cliff  4,000 
feet  hif^h  rising  immediately  l>ehind  it  may  be  distinguished  from  Seat- 
tle, liudics  have  reached  the  point  by  horse  and  sled  without  walking. 
The  McudowH,  Crater  Lake,  Eagle  Cliff,  Lace  Falls,  Prospect  Park,  and 
the  Hailey  Willis,  the  Edmunds,  and  the  Puyallup  Glaciers  feeding  the 
one  river,  are  objects  of  interest  on  that  route.  The  view  from  Eagle 
CliflF  which  overhangs  the  Puyallup  River  2,500  ft.  below  it,  and  com- 
mands  a  full  outline  of  the  snowy  summit,  is  extolled  as  the  Jinest 
mountain  view  on  the  Pacific  coast  by  many  Sierra  and  Alpine  climbers. 
The  glaciers  of  Mt.  Rainier  were  first  reported  by  Messrs.  Wil^ion  and 
Emmons,  of  the  U.  S.  Geological  Survey,  in  1870,  and  mapped  by 
Hiiiley  Willis,  of  the  Northern  Tran.scontinental  Survey,  in  1883,  The 
C(jwlitz  Glacier,  on  the  S.  side,  is  12  miles  long  and  from  1  to  3  miles 
wide,  broken  by  several  magnificent  ice  falls.  No  systematic  explora- 
tions or  thorough  study  of  these  glaciers  have  been  made.  All  have  an 
average  motion  of  1 2  inches  a  day  in  midsuraiuer. 

Original  accounts  of  the  earlier  ascents  of  Mt.  Rainier  and  descrip- 
tive articles  have  been  published  as  follows :  Emmons,  S.  F.,  Bulletin 
No.  4  of  Atnerican  Geological  Society  (N.  Y.),  session  1876-'77  ;  Fobes, 
Warner,  The  West  Shore  Magazine,  Seattle,  September,  1886;  Hen- 
(irickson,  C.  D.,  The  American  Magazine,  London,  November,  1887; 
Kautz,  A.  v.,  Overland  Monthly  Magazine,  San  Francisco,  June, 
1875  ;  Muir,  John,  "  Picturesque  California,"  New  York  and  San  Fran- 
cisco, part  xviii. ;  Stevens,  Hazard,  Atlantic  Monthly  Magazine,  Boston, 
November,  1876;  Willis,  Bailey,  Columbia  College  (N.  Y.)  School  of 
Mines  (Quarterly,  January,  1887  ;  Report  of  Tenth  Census  (1880),  Wash- 
ington. 

The  Alaska  excursion  steamers  usually  leave  Tacoma  at  daylight, 
passengers  going  on  board  the  night  before.  A  few  hours'  stay  are 
allowed  at  Seattle,  which  is  fully  described  in  Appletons'  General 
Guide. 

Seattle,  population  42,837  by  the  census  of  1890,  the  commercial 
rival  of  Tacoma,  was  named  for  the  old  Duwamish  chief,  and  fronts 
on  Elliot,  originally  Duwamish  Bay.  The  stations  from  which  the 
Northern  Pacific,  the  Union  Pacific,  the  Great  Northern,  the  Columbia 
&  Paget  Sound,  the  Seattle  &  Northern,  and  the  Seattle,  Lake  Shore  & 
Eastern  Ry.  trains  depart,  are  on  the  water  front  in  close  proxiriity 


it! 


HU 


10 


THE  PUOET  SOUND  COUNTKY. 


to  Yesler's  and  Commercial  Wharf,  where  Sound  and  ocean  steamers 
land.  Cabs  and  omnibuscH  have  moderate  tariff  of  charges.  The 
Ranier  and  the  Denny,  rates  $3  a  day  and  upward,  are  the  leading 
hotels.  The  ship^s  delay  usually  allows  time  for  a  ride  by  cable  or 
electric  cars  to  the  heights  around  the  harbour  or  to  Lake  Washington 
or  to  Lake  Union,  2  miles  distant. 

Port  Townsend,  the  "  Key  City  of  the  Sound,"  population  4,668,* 
is  the  i)ort  of  entry  for  the  Puget  Sound  customs  district,  and  point  of 
departure  of  U.  S.  mails  for  Alaska.  San  Francisco  passengers  usually 
join  the  i^'aska  steamers  at  this  port.  Excursion  steamers  make 
short  stops,  but  mail  steamers  receive  and  discharge  the  larger  part  of 
their  cargo  here,  and  often  lie  for  24  hours.  The  new  Custom-IIouse 
and  Court-House  on  the  edge  of  the  bluff  command  fine  views,  and 
electric  railways  crossing  the  peninsula  to  the  Fuca  shore  afford  means 
of  passing  the  waiting  hours.  There  is  a  large  modem  hotel  near  the 
wharves  of  the  Port  Townsend  &  Southern  Ry.,  which  is  under  con- 
struction, and  will  connect  the  west  shore  towns  with  the  other  rail- 
way systems  at  Olympia.  FoH  Townsend,  a  two-company  military 
post  at  the  end  of  the  bay,  may  be  reached  by  6-mile  carriage-roads,  or 
by  small  steamei  rf  v.  hich  ply  between  the  town  and  the  Irondale  blast- 
furnaces and  Port  Kadlock  mill  beyond.  Small  steamers  run  between 
Port  Townsend,  Port  Angeles,  Pysht,  and  Neah  Bay  on  the  Fuca 
shore.  There  is  a  large  village  of  Makah  Indians  at  Neah  Bay,  4  miles 
E.  of  Cape  Flattery.  The  women  are  the  finest  basket-weavers  on  the 
coast,  and  their  gayly  coloured  wares  may  be  bought  at  Port  Townsend 
and  Victoria. 

Everette  is  the  terminal  point  of  the  Great  Northern  Ry.  from 
St.  Paul.  Its  rail  communications  permit  passengers  to  join  Alaska 
steamers  at  Anacortes  or  Seattle.  Everette's  growth  has  been  since 
1890,  and  among  its  industries  are  ship-yards  where  whaleback  freight 
and  panenger  steamers  are  built. 

Anacortes,  on  Fidalgo  Island,  population  2,000,  is  108  n.Iles 
from  Seattle,  and  terminus  of  the  Pacific  division  (Portland,  Seattle  & 
Anacortes  Line)  of  the  N.  P.  R.  There  is  a  fine  modern  hotel.  The 
Anacortes,  in  a  pine  grove  adjoining  the  wharf.     Alaska  and  San 


*  Through  neglect  to  enlarge  the  city  limits  and  include  newly 
settled  additions  before  the  census  of  1890,  Port  Townsend  showed 
little  increase  of  population  in  the  decade,  and  Jefferson  County  was 
given  credit  for  the  great  increase  in  inhabitants. 


THE    PrOET   fiOUND  COUNTRY. 


11 


Francifloo  steamers  of  the  P,  C.  S.  S.  Co.  call  regularly,  and  the  Sound 
l>oat9  give  daily  communication  with  Seattle  and  Tacoma.  Alaska 
steamers  sometimes  visit  Fairhaven,  population  4,000,  and  What- 
com, population  10,000,  the  two  enterprising  towns  on  Bcllingham 
Bay. 

All  this  upper  end  of  the  Sound  is  dominated  by  Mt.  Baker  (10,- 
810  ft.),  an  extinct  volcano,  whose  many  native  names — Pukhomis, 
Puksan,  and  Kulshan — all  mean  "the  fire-mountain."  Galiano  and 
Valdes  called  it  Mt.  Carmelo.  Vancouver  saw  it  later  from  the  strait 
of  Fuca  or  New  Dinigeness,  at  first  vaguely  floating  above  the  clouds, 
and  then  the  whole  slope  of  "the  lofty  mountain  discovered  in  the 
afternoon  by  the  third  lieutenant,  and  in  compliment  to  him  called 
by  me  Mt.  Baker,"  Monday,  April  30,  1792.  Baker  drew  all  of  Van- 
couver's charts. 

The  mountain  has  been  in  eruption  many  times  in  this  century,  by 
Indian  tradition.  There  was  an  eruption  in  1 852,  when  a  great  body 
of  lava  flowed  down  the  side  of  the  mountain,  and  showed  as  a  black 
nmss  amid  the  snow  all  winter.  There  are  no  trails  on  its  slopc^^,  and 
it  is  much  more  difficult  of  ascent  than  Mt.  Ranier.  It  was  first  as- 
cended from  the  W.  or  Lurami  side  by  Edmund  T.  Coleman,  an  English 
landscape  artist  and  Alpine  climber,  in  August,  1808.*  Mr.  E.  S. 
Ingiaham  and  a  party  of  six  left  the  railroad  at  Silver  Ti«ke  Station, 
followed  the  Xooksack  canon,  and  made  the  last  climb  on  the  W.  side. 
They  found  the  summit,  July  3,  1891,  an  elliptical  plateau,  a  third  of  a 
mile  in  length,  probably  a  snow-filled  crater.  A  small  crater.  1,000  ft. 
below,  was  filled  with  sulphur  crystals  and  sulphurous  gas,  and  steam 
blew  in  clouds. 

The  group  of  Washington  Islands  lying  between  Bellingham 
Bay  and  the  strait  of  Fuca  constitute  hhinil  Comity,  with  Friday 
Harbour  on  San  Juan  Island  as  the  county  seat.  There  are  ranches 
and  fruit  farms  on  all  these  islands,  and  this  maze  of  water-ways  at  the 
boundary  line  offer  great  inducement  in  the  way  of  protection  to 
smugglers  of  opium  and  Chinese.  The  smugglers  own  swift  schooners 
and  launches,  and  easily  elude  the  one  slow  revenue  cutter  assigned  to 
the  patrol  of  the  sound. 

San  Juan  iMland,  14  miles  long  and  6  or  7  miles  wide,  contains 
vast  deposits  of  limestone.  A  half  million  barrels  of  lime  are  shipped 
from  the  ovens  at  Baches  Harbour  each  year.    It  is  shipped  to  all  parts 


*  See  Mountaineering  on  the  Pacific,  Harper's  Monthly,  November, 
1869.      , 


\\., 


12 


THE   PUGET   SOUND  COUNTllY. 


1 1 


of  the  coast,  and  several  vessels  loaded  with  cargoes  of  lime  have  been 
fired  by  a  leak  or  a  dashing  wave. 

THE  INTKRNATIONAL  BorNDAKY  LINE. 

San  Juan  Island  nearly  caused  a  war  l)etwei'n  Great  Ikitain  and  the 
United  States,  both  countries  claiming  ownershij),  as  the  Oregon  Treaty, 
June  16,  1846,  did  not  specify  whether  the  boundary  line  should  pass 
through  Canal  de  Ilaro  or  Uosario  sttait.  Sir  James  Douglass  and 
Governor  I.^aac  Stevens  both  claimed  jurisdiction.  The  Sheriff  of 
Whatcom  County  sold  H.  B.  Co.  sheep  for  taxes.  An  American  citi/.en 
shot  a  British  pig,  for  whose  loss  $100  was  no  e(|uivalent  to  its  owner ; 
and  sentiment  waxed  bitter.  General  Harney  hurried  troops  off  Irom 
Steilacoom,  and  established  a  military  post  on  one  end  of  the  island  in 
1869,  just  as  the  British  and  American  boundary  commissioners  had 
begun  their  work  of  peaceable  settlement.  A  Ikitish  war  ship  re- 
mained on  guard  ;  the  garrison  was  increased ;  General  Scott  came 
from  Washington,  and  ottered  joint  occupation  by  both  Governments 
until  the  boundary  line  should  be  decided.  Until  1871  a  company  of 
United  States  .soldiers  held  the  southern  end  of  the  island,  and  an 
equal  number  of  British  blue  jackets  the  northern  point.  There  was 
amicable  intercourse,  the  two  garrisons  entering  into  athletic  contests 
with  ardour;  and  succeeding  the  Treaty  of  Washington,  1871,  the 
Emperor  of  Germany,  as  arbitrator,  decided  that  de  Haro  was  the  main 
channel  and  the  water  boundary.  The  British  withdrew  in  November, 
1872,  replanting  gardens  in  order  to  leave  San  Juan  exactly  as  they 
found  it.  It  commands  the  straits,  and  its  thousnnd-feet-high  hill 
affords  a  site  for  the  m»)st  effective  battery  in  the  world.  The  dip- 
lomats split  finest  hairs  in  their  arguments.  One  strait  was  said  to 
separate  the  continent  from  Vancouver,  the  other  to  separate  Van- 
couver from  the  continent ;  and  Lord  John  Russell  said  :  "  San  Juan 
is  a  defensive  position  if  in  the  hands  of  (Jreat  Britain ;  it  is  an  ag- 
gressive position  if  in  the  hands  of  the  United  States.  The  United 
States  may  fairly  be  called  upon  to  renounce  aggression  ;  but  Great 
Britain  can  hardly  be  expected  to  abandon  defence." 

The  Strait  of  Juan  de  Fuca,  leading  to  the  Pacific,  is  a  magnifi- 
cent highway,  83  miles  in  length  and  12  miles  in  width,  but  broadening 
into  a  considerable  sound  at  the  eastern  end.  It  is  close  walled  on  the 
United  States  side  by  the  Olympic  range,  chief  among  whose  snowy 
summits  is  "  the  Mt.  Olympus  of  Meares,"  "  the  most  remarkable  moun- 
tain we  had  seen  off  the  coast  of  New  Albion,  ...  a  summit  with 
a  very  elegant  double  fork,"  wrote  Vancouver.  Long  before  him  Juan 
Perez  had  named  it  the  Sierra  de  Santa  Rosalina. 

This  is  the  fabled  strait  of  Anian  supposed  to  lead  through  to  the 
Atlantic,  and  for  which  the  greatest  navigators  of  two  centuries 
sought.    Such  a  strait  was  first  exploited  by  the  Portuguese  naviga- 


1:1, 

f./'  "J: 


till 

Mi! 


THE  PUOET  BOUND  COUNTRY. 


13 


tor  Corterottl,  wlio  claimed  to  have  sailed  from  tlic  Labrador  coast 
throii),'h  a  narrow  strait  to  the  Indian  Ocean  In  the  year  IBOo.  Kighty- 
ei^'lit  years  later  Maldonado  said  that  he  too  had  sailed  through  these 
straits  (»f  Anian  to  the  Western  Ocean.  Then  Admiral  del  Fonte  has- 
tened northward  from  Callao  in  1640  to  intercept  some  Boston  ships 
that  were  to  come  through  this  northwest  passage  to  interfere  with 
Spanish  interests  in  the  Pacific.  Del  Fonte  gave  lull  details,  and  told 
all  about  the  great  archipelago  of  San  Lazaria  and  the  great  river 
under  the  fiUd  parallel.  He  described  the  natives,  gave  the  names  of 
their  village.'*,  their  numbers,  and,  sailing  up  a  river  to  a  lake,  passed 
out  by  another  river  into  the  Atlantic,  and  there  found  a  ship  froni 
'•  Malteshusetts."  In  the  year  1692,  Apostolos  Valerianos,  or  Juan  de 
Fuca,  a  (ireek  pilot  in  the  employ  of  the  Vicerov  of  New  Spain,  took  a 
caravel  into  *'a  broad  opening  between  47'  and  48  ."  He  sailed  east- 
ward for  loo  miles,  and  past  divers  islands  for  20  days,  where  he  saw 
men  clad  in  the  skins  of  beasts,  and  emerged  into  the  Atlantic.  Con- 
sidering his  duty  done,  he  sailed  1  ack  through  his  straits  and  down  to 
Acapulco ;  was  sent  to  Spain  to  report  the  marvel  to  the  king,  and 
some  years  later  told  his  tale  of  discovery  and  royal  neglect  to  an  Eng- 
lish consul  in  Italy,  who  tried  vainly  to  interest  Sir  Walter  Raleigh  in 
the  matter  and  have  the  old  man  taken  to  England.  Then  began  that 
scries  of  voyages  in  search  of  the  straits  of  Anian,  which  employed  all 
the  great  navigators  from  Frobisher  and  Drake  to  Vancouver,  and  filled 
tlieir  day  wiili  such  true  sea-stories  as  have  no  match  now.  Every 
adventurer  and  every  navigator  out  of  a  job  claimed  to  have  gone 
through  the  straits,  or  to  be  willing  to  go  at  some  one  else's  expense, 
and  the  wits  and  romancers  made  tine  play  with  the  theme. 

Captain  James  Cook,  on  his  third  and  last  voyage  of  discovery, 
sought  for  the  strait,  but  missed  it,  discovering  Nootka,  on  the  W.  coast 
of  Vancouver  Island,  which  the  Spaniards  had  previously  found,  and 
where  they  later  built  a  fort  to  ward  off  Russian  advances  toward  t*' 
California  colonies.  In  1787  Berkoly  found  the  broad  strait;  in  1788 
Meares  sailed  into  and  named  it  for  Juan  de  Fuca ;  in  1 789  Captain 
Kendrick,  of  Boston,  sailed  around  Vancouver  Island;  in  1790  Lieu- 
tenant Quimper  entered  Puget  Sound  and  the  Gulf  of  Georgia  ;  in  1791 
Caamano  explored  and  discovered  the  Fraser  River  ;  and  in  1792  Galiano 
and  Valdes  surveyed  the  Gulf  of  Georgia  and  circumnavigated  the 
great  island,  overtaken  and  accompanied  by  Vancouver.  The  latter 
had  been  sent  in  accordance  with  the  provisions  of  the  Nootka  Con- 
vention,  which,  in  adjudging  indemnity  for  British  ships  seized  and  sold 
for  invading  the  Spanish  colonies,  decreed  that  the  Spaniards  should 
abandon  their  Nootka  fort,  and  the  Northwest  Coast  become  virgin  soil 
free  to  trade  and  settlement  by  all  people.  Vancouver  was  charged  to 
investigate  the  alleged  discovery  of  De  Fuca's  strait,  and  to  explore 
tlie  coast  for  a  passage  into  the  Atlantic.  Spanish  explorers,  and  Boston 
and  British  fur-traders  had  preceded  him  in  many  instances,  but  al- 
though he  met  them,  saw  their  charts,  and  received  much  aid,  his 
charts  and  narrative  ignore  their  work,  and,  being  the  first  published, 
won  him  a  discoverer's  honours  throughout.     His  charts  were  the  only 


!  I, 


;  't 


1. 1' 
i  A 


ill  I 


M 


l!i' 


luit'l! 


II!  'i 


I 


li 

I'i'  ,!' 

In  V 

11'*  1 

t 
i 

1 

11 

i 

ii 

1a1 

u 


VANCOirV'ER   ISLANT*. 


oneH  in  uso  h«'tween  Puget  Sound  and  Dixon  Entrance  until  the  Wilkes 
KxplotingKxpeditioii  HurveyH,  in  1841,  furnished  new  chnrtH  from  Com- 
nicnceinent  Hay  to  the  (iulf  of  (icor^jia,  and  the  Richards  and  Pender 
surveys,  lH68-'68,  of  the  entire  British  Columbia  coast  were  made  the 
basis  of  a  new  set  of  admiralty  charts.  Vancoiiver  is  the  authority 
for  many  charts  of  southeastern  Alaska  now  in  use. 

Vancouver  Island. 

The  island  of  Quadra*  and  Vancouver,  as  those  two  agreed  to  call 
it  in  1792,  is  the  largest  ishmd  on  the  Pacific  coast  of  North  America, 
300  miles  long,  from  40  to  80  miles  wide,  and  in  area  neaily  e(iualling 
Ireland,  which  its  climate  resembles.  It  is  mountainous  throughout, 
the  main  range,  a  continuation  of  the  Olympics,  showing  many  peaks 
0,000  and  8,000  ft.  in  heig!  ..  Tlie  shores  aie  deeply  indented,  many 
inlets  penetrating  to  the  heart  of  the  island,  which  is  densely  wooded 
throughout,  with  occasional  small  prairies  at  the  southern  end.  Mineral 
de[)Osits  have  been  uncovered  at  many  places,  and  extensive  coal  fields 
are  worked  on  the  Georgian  shore.  Settlements  have  advanced  slowly 
on  the  west  coast,  which  in  beset  with  many  dangers  to  navigation, 
but  which  in  time  must  attract  fishing  communities.  Scottish  crofter 
families  have  already  been  colonized  for  that  purpose. 

After  the  abandonment  of  Nootka,  the  first  settlement  was  made  by 
the  H.  B.  Co.  in  1844,  when  they  built  a  fort  at  the  native  Vunioitnn, 
"  the  place  where  camass  grows,"  which  became  Fort  Victoria.  In  1849 
her  Majesty  assigned  all  of  Vancouver  Island  to  the  H.  B.  Co.  forever. 
In  1868  it  was  bought  back  by  the  Crown  for  £57,500,  just  as  the 
Fraser  River  gold  excitein<  nt  brought  30,000  people  to  the  colony  at 
once,  and  a  canvas  city  of  15,000  inhabitants  surrounded  the  stockade 
for  montlis.  Vancouver  was  a  separate  colony,  and  Sir  James  Douglass 
iis  Governor,  until  188(),  when  it  became  one  province  with  British 
Columbia,  under  the  same  distinguished  Governor.  In  1871  British 
Columbia  joined  the  Dominion  of  Canada,  with  an  understanding  that 
the  Dominion  would  build  a  railway  to  the  Pacific.  Delay  in  fulfilling 
that  promise  caused  disaffection  and  a  strong  sentiment  for  annexation 
with  the  United  States.  The  completion  of  the  C.  P.  R.  in  1885 
brought  a  revival  second  only  to  Fraser  Rivor  times,  and  the  island 
cities  have  grown  as  rapidly  as  their  younger  rivals  on  the  mainland 
shore.  Extensive  fortifications  protect  Esquimault,  the  British  naval 
station,  which  commands  the  strait  of  Fuca. 

Victoria,  population  20,000,  fully  described  in  The  Canadian 
GuiDE-BooK,   Part  II,   offers  much   to  the  tourist   who   awaits   the 

*  Quadra  was  Spanish  commandant  at  Nootka  in  1792. 


R()(ulu:ay  in  Sfa,h'y  Park.    Vnncotiver. 


i"" 


?J\ 


\ , 


VANCOUVER   ISLAND. 


15 


Alaska  steamer  at  that  point.  The  Bnard  ($3.60  per  day)  and  the 
Dallas  (|3  per  day),  are  the  leading  hotels,  and  Marboeufs,  or  the 
Poodle-Dog  Restaurant,  is  famous  for  its  eiiiihe.  The  P.  C.  S.  S.  Co.'s 
steamers  land  passengers  at  the  outside  whuii,  ».nd  the  C.  P.  N.  Co.'s 
steamers  land  at  the  wharves  at  the  inside  harbour.  An  electric  railway 
connects  the  outside  wharf  with  the  business  part  of  the  city,  and  its 
branch  lines  reach  Esquimault  and  the  suburbs.  Cabs  are  cheap, 
and  the  drives  about  Victoria  are  much  famed  for  the  picturcsijue 
scenes  they  lead  to,  and  their  perfect  road-beds.  There  is  daily 
communication  between  Victoria,  New  Westminster,  Port  Townsend, 
Seattle,  and  Tacoma.  The  C.  P.  N.  Co.'s  mail  steamers  make  semi- 
monthly trips  to  Barclay  Sound,  on  the  W.  coast  of  the  island,  and 
to  the  N.  coast.  C.  P.  N.  Co.'s  excursion  steamers  depart  at  inter- 
vals for  Alaska  during  the  summer  months,  calling  at  Vancouver, 
Alert  Bay,  Fort  Rupert,  River's  Inlet,  China  Hat,  Gardiner's  Inlet,  Port 
Essington,  Metlakahtla  and  Fort  Simpson,  in  addition  to  the  chief 
points  of  interest  in  Alaska — Fort  Wrangel,  Sitka  and  Juneau,  and 
skirting  past  but  not  landing  at  the  Muir  and  Taku  Glaciers. 

The  P.  C.  S.  S.  Co.'s  steamers  regularly  call  at  Victoria  in  going  and 
returning,  and  their  steamers  plying  between  San  Francisco  and  the 
Puget  Sound  ports  make  it  a  regular  port  of  call  every  five  days. 

The  C.  P.  R.  Royal  Mail  Steamship  Line  to  China  and  Japan  call  at 
Victoria  in  going  and  returning.  The  steamers  of  the  N.  I*.  R.  Co.  to 
China  and  Japan,  and  the  Puget  Sound  and  Hawaii  Traffic  Co.'s  Hono- 
lulu steamers,  also  call  at  Victoria. 

The  Island  Railway,  80  miles  in  length,  connects  Esquimault  and 
Victoria  with  Nanaimo  on  the  Gulf  of  Georgia.  It  W)  s  begun  in  1884 
and  completed  in  1888,  its  projectors,  Robert  Dunsmuir  and  his  sons, 
James  Bryden,  Leland  Stanford,  C.  P.  Huntington,  and  Charles  Crocker, 
receiving  a  Government  subsidy  of  * 750,000,  and  a  grant  of  land  ten 
miles  in  width  on  either  side  of  the  road-bed,  with  all  the  minerals  and 
timber  included.  Passengers  may,  at  their  own  expense,  agreeably 
break  the  steamer  trip  by  taking  this  short  rail  route  between  Victoria 
and  Nanaimo,  and  enjoy  the  island  forests  and  scenery. 

In  a  single  day,  or  during  the  usual  waits  of  Alaska  mail  and  ex- 
cursion steamers  at  Victoria,  the  tourist  can  see  the  war  ships  and  dry 
dock  at  Esquimault;  the  boiling-tide  rapids  at  the  Gorge,  the  true 
Es(iuimault,  or  "  rush  of  waters  " ;  the  Colonial  Museum  ;  the  Songhies 
Camp  across  the  harbour ;  the  curio  shops  in  Johnson  Street ;  Chinatowr , 


ill 
III! 

''•nil 

•I;!  I 

ll  ';  t 

!!  i;: 


;Mt 


!  !h 


•  ! 


lliiili! 


!1 


i 


Kill 


!-ill!i 


le 


VANCOUVER  ISLAND. 


and  on  certain  days  hear  the  Military  Band  play  in  Beacon  Hill  Park. 
The  Dominion  tariff  prevents  the  shops  from  offering  many  inducements 
to  shoppers  and  amateur  smugglers  to  the  United  States.  Sooke, 
Saanich,  Cowichan,  further  inlets  and  distant  lakes,  with  their  tidy 
British  inns,  snug  shooting-boxes,  or  rough  camps,  offer  much  to 
sportsmen  and  anglers  who  may  prolong  their  stay. 

TIDES. 

The  tides  of  the  Pacific  coast  differ  greatly  from  those  of  the 
Atlantic.  Lieutenant  R.  C  Ray,  U.  S.  N.,  in  the  U.  S.  Hydrographic 
Office,  "Coast  of  British  Columbia,"  explains  these  Pacific  tides  in 
this  reference  to  those  of  the  strait  of  Fuca  and  Gulf  of  Georgia  : 

"  The  great  and  perplexing  tidal  irregularities  may  therefore  be  said 
to  be  embraced  between  the  f  trait  of  Fuca,  near  the  Race  Islands,  and 
Cape  Mudge,  a  distance  of  x^O  miles;  and  a  careful  investigation  of  the 
observations  made  at  Esquimault,  and  among  the  islands  of  the  Ilaro 
Archipelago,  shows  that  during  the  summer  months.  May,  June,  and 
July,  there  occurs  but  one  high  and  one  low  water  during  the  twenty- 
four  hours,  high  water  at  the  full  and  change  of  the  moon  happening 
about  midnight,  and  varying  but  slightly  from  that  hour  during  any 
day  of  the  three  months;  the  spring.^  range  from  8  to  10  ft.,  the  neaps 
from  4  to  5  ft.  The  tides  are  almost  stationary  for  two  hours  on  either 
side  of  high  or  low  water,  unless  affected  by  strong  winds  outside. 

"  During  August,  September,  and  October  there  are  two '  gh  and  low 
waters  in  the  twenty-four  hoi.'-s;  a  superior  and  an  inferior  tide,  the 
i:igh  water  of  the  superior  varying  between  Ih.  and  3li.  a.  m.,  the  range 
during  these  months  from  3  to  5  ft.,  the  night  tide  the  highest. 

"  During  winter  almost  a  reversal  of  these  rules  appears  to  take 
place:  thus,  in  November,  December,  and  January  the  twelve-hour 
tides  again  occur,  but  the  time  of  high  water  is  at  or  about  noon  instead 
of  midnight. 

"  In  February,  March,  and  April  there  are  two  tides,  the  superior  high 
water  occurring  from  Ih.  to  3h.  p.  m.  Thus  it  may  be  said  that  in  sum- 
mer months  the  tides  are  low  during  the  day,  the  highest  tides  occur- 
ring in  the  night,  and  in  winter  the  tides  are  low  during  the  night,  the 
highest  tide  occurring  in  the  day. 

"  Tlie  ebb  stream  has  always  been  found  to  run  southward  through 
the  Haro  Archipelago,  and  out  of  Fuca  Strait  for  two  and  one-half 
hours  after  it  is  low  v*ater  by  the  shore,  the  water  rising  during 
that  time;  the  ebb  is  stronger  than  the  flood,  and  generally  two 
hours'  longer  duration. 

"  The  tides  during  those  months  when  two  high  and  two  low  waters 
occur  in  the  twenty-four  hours  are  far  more  irregular  than  when 
there  is  only  one  twelve-hour  tide ;  and  another  anomaly  exists,  viz.,  the 
greatest  range  not  infrequently  occurs  at  the  first  and  last  (|uarters, 
instead  of  at  the  full  and  change  of  the  moon." 


on  Hill  Park. 
y  inducements 
ates.  Sooke, 
ith  their  tidy 
ffer  much   to 


H 


those  of  the 
Hydrographic 
cilic  tides  in 
toigia  : 
efoie  be  said 

Islands,  and 
gation  of  the 

of  the  Haro 
y,  June,  and 
:  the  twenty- 
a  happening 

during  any 
t.,  the  neaps 
irs  on  either 
mtside. 

"gh  and  low 
lor  tide,  the 
.,  the  range 
est. 

ars  to  take 
twelve-hour 
oon  instead 


iperior  high 
hat  in  sum- 
ides  occur- 
i  night,  the 

ird  through 
d  one-half 
ng  during 
lerally  two 

low  waters 
than  when 
s,  viz.,  the 
i  quarters. 


■  hi, 

ill;" 

I'l'i: 

i: 

it  ;•' 


''I'M 


ilii'f 


til 


i 


HI 


!!;» 


ill 


•li 


it!';'; 


* 


itlM!l 


Iti'i'' 


THE    INLAND    SEA. 


17 


i 


^ 


i 


The  Inland  Sea. 

From  Victorin  to  Queen  Charlotte  Sound. 

The  P.  V.  S.  i-'.  Co.V  steamers  after  leaving  Victoria  skirt  the  shores 
of  San  Juan  Island  and  enter  the  (Julf  of  CJeorgia  by  the  narrow  Active 
J'd.s.s  between  Mayne  and  fialiano  Islands,  discovered  by  and  named  for 
the  r,  S.  S.  survey  ship  Activr,  in  isns.  The  C.  P.  X.  Co.'s  steamers 
use  riiitnjM)'  PaxK^  named  for  II.  IJ.  M.  S.  Plumper.  Both  are  very  nar- 
row, with  steep,  picturescpie  banks.  The  (iulf  of  C>eorgia  and  its 
connecting  waters  comprise  an  Inland  Sen  greater  in  extent  than  that 
lanious  one  lying  Ijetvvcen  the  three  great  islands  of  Japan,  and  it  is 
more  ricldy  endowed  by  Nature.  The  lOO-jnile  stretch  between  Active 
Pass  and  Cape  Mudge  is  the  finest  pjirt  of  this  Inland  Sea,  that  is  40 
Mild  <'i(i  miles  broad  otT  tiie  mouth  of  the  Fraser  River.  Tlie  Crown 
.Motintiiins  on  the  Vancouver  shore  are  snow-capped  all  their  length, 
iiud  Mt.  Baker  is  chief  in  the  white  host  of  Cascade  peaks  on  the  main- 
liiud  shore. 

The  fiesh  water  of  the  Fraser  River  may  be  distinguished  miles 
away  on  emerging  from  Active  or  Plumper  Pass,  the  fre.^i  flood  strip- 
ing and  mottling  the  surface  with  a  paler  green,  and  with  its  diflerent 
lit'iisity  and  temperature  floating  over  the  sea-water  or  cutting  through 
it  in  solid  l)odies  that  everywhere  show  sharply  defined  lines  of  separa- 
tion. Vancouver  scouted  the  idea  of  there  being  a  great  river  sucl  as 
Caamano  claimed  to  have  found  a  year  before  and  named  the  Rio 
HIuuco  in  honour  of  the  Prime  Minister  of  Spain,  although  his  ships  were 
then  anchored  in  the  midst  of  these  mottled  waters  which  every  tourist 
notes. 

The  Fraxer  River,  whose  head-waters  were  discovered  by  Sir  Alex- 
ander Mackenzie  in  1793,  and  whose  course  was  followed  from  head- 
waters to  tide-waters  by  Simon  Fraser  in  18<>)>;,  is  described  in  all  its 
length  in  Appleton.>'  Canadian  (iuide-Book,  Part  II.  Full  accounts  of 
the  cities  of  New  Westminster  and  Vancouver  are  found  there  as 
well. 

Passengers  arriving  from  the  East  by  the  C.  P.  R.  may  join  the 
Alaska  excursion  steamers  of  the  C.  P.  N.  Co.  at  VancoinHr.  The 
niail  steamers  of  that  line  do  not  always  touch  at  Vancouver,  and  pas- 
sengers nmst  join  them  at  Victoria,  save  when  they  may  have  the 
chance  to  intercept  them  at  Nataihno.  The  Alaska  mail  and  excursion 
steamers  of  the  P.  C.  S.  S.  Co.  do  not  touch  at  Vancouver,  and  C.  P.  R. 


1!I 


I;  if 


[  i  i'l'  I  '1 


i 


PHI 
Itilliilllil 


m 


iiili!!',,, 


18 


THE    INLAND   SEA. 


passengers  join  them  at  Anacortes  or  Victoria  as  the  agent  may  indi- 
cate. Steamers  for  Victoria  and  Nanaimo  leave  Vancouver  daily  upon 
the  arrival  of  the  overland  trains. 

The  Vicinity  of  Nanaimo. 

Nanaimo,  40  miles  across  from  Vancouver,  population  4,000,  is  a 
l)usy  colliery  town,  where  Alaska  steamers  of  the  P.  C.  S.  S.  Co.  remain 
from  six  to  twenty-four  hours  while  coaling.  It  is  fully  described  in 
The  Canadian  GuinK  Book,  Part  II.  The  town  itself  offers  little 
of  interest  to  the  tourist  save  the  old  H.  B.  Co.  Mock-house,  dating 
from  1833. 

Coal  was  discovered  in  1850  through  the  Indians,  who  brought  a 
canoe  load  of  the  black  stones  to  the  II.  B.  Co.  blacksmiths  at  Vic- 
toria. At  first  the  Indians  were  paid  one  blanket  for  8  barrels  of  coal 
taken  out.  Four  companies  now  operate  the  Nanaimo  mines ;  the  har- 
bour is  busy  with  waiting  and  loading  ships,  and  the  output  is  about 
600,000  tons  a  year,  selling  at  the  wharf  for  .$3  and  $3.50  per  ton. 

The  Alaska  steamers  as  often  coal  at  the  Wellington  wharves  in 
Departure  Bay,  which  is  separated  from  Nanaimo  harbour  by  New- 
castle Island,  whose  coal-pits  and  stone  quarry  are  abandoned.  A 
steam  ferry  connects  Departure  Bay  wharves  with  Nanaimo,  and  a  6- 
mile  carriage  road  through  the  forest  gives  beautiful  outlooks  upon  the 
water.  The  Wcllinffton  mines  lie  5  miles  from  the  wharves,  connected 
by  railway  and  carriage  road.  The  mines  were  discovered  by  the  late 
Richard  Dunsmuir,  Scotch  coal  expert  of  the  H.  B.  Co.,  whose  horse 
stumbled  and  uncovered  the  outcroppings  of  the  best  coal  in  the  neigh- 
bourhood. The  British  admiral,  Mr.  Dunsmuir,  and  one  other  ventured 
£1,000  each  in  developing  the  property.  At  the  end  of  two  years  Mr. 
Dunsmuir  bought  the  admiral's  share  for  £50,000,  and  at  the  end  of  five 
years  the  remaining  partner's  share  for  £150,000.  The  5  Dunsmuir 
mines  at  Wdlingion  and  North  Wellington  clear  over  $50,000  each 
month,  and  the  pits  are  surrounded  by  long  rows  of  colliers'  tenements. 
Native,  Chinese,  Cornish,  and  frontier  miners  have  been  employed,  and 
after  a  serious  riot,  calling  for  troops  to  suppress  it,  the  owners  closed 
one  group  of  mines  for  two  years,  and  its  village  was  depopulated. 
Wellington  commands  a  higher  price  than  Nanaimo  coal,  and  is  used 
in  city  gas  works  on  the  coast.  Dr.  George  M.  Dawson,  who  recently 
examined  these  bituminous  coal  measures,  found  that  the  cretaceous 
rocks  holding  these  coal-beds  filled  a  trough  130  miles  in  length  along 
the  east  shore  of  Vancouver  Island.     Dr.  llarrington's  analysis  of  this 


M  \ 


?ent  may  indi- 
i'er  daily  upcn 


ion  4,000,  is  a 
S.  Co.  remain 
>'  described  in 
'  offers  little 
liouse,  dating 


ho  brought  a 
niiths  at  Vio- 
arreliJ  of  coal 
nes ;  the  har- 
tput  is  about 
per  ton. 

1  wharves  in 
)our  by  New- 
indoned.  A 
mo,  and  a  5- 
aks  upon  the 
?s,  connected 

by  the  late 
whose  horse 
in  the  neigh- 
ler  ventured 
ro  years  Mr. 
e  end  of  five 
5  Dunsmuir 
50,000  each 
'  tenements, 
iployed,  and 
mers  closed 
epopulated, 
and  is  used 
ho  recently 

cretaceous 
ngth  along 
ysis  of  this 


i 


:!i.:t 


!.-'' 


It.: 

.,  Ill  ■»; 


I 


if: 

ill.;';'; 


lllliil.  ' 


m 


:|{;;;f!il  h 


The  (forge  of  the  Howathco. 


\ J 


THE   INLAND   SKA. 


19 


true  liituiuiiious  coal  gave  an  average  of  (V29  pei  rent  of  ash  and  147 
per  cent  of  water. 

Besides  the  carriage  roads  al:'eady  mentioned,  one  is  being  cut  to 
the  summit  of  Mt.  B<n.son,  behind  Nanaimo. 

The  surrounding  forests  are  of  greatest  interest  to  botanists,  and 
wherever  tlie  rocks  are  uncovered  they  show  the  grooved  and  rounck'd 
iarvii)j:s  of  a  ghieial  garden.  The  carriage  road  is  often  a  tunnel 
tlirough  the  dense,  dark  foliage  of  the  huge  Douglas  firs,  and  the  last 
of  the  rich,  red-barked  madrona-trees  or  Menzies  arbutus  grow  among 
the  evergreens.  There  is  an  especially  fine  grove  of  madiofias  on  the 
ki.idl  l»etween  the  coal  wharves  and  the  block-house  in  Nanaimo. 
Ferns  of  many  varieties  and  of  gigi  ntic  size  thrive — those  t»  and  9  ft.  in 
Iciiirtli  lieing  easily  found  at  the  end  of  summer — and  among  the  many 
.-trange  wild  flowers  there  is  a  blue  clover.  Azaleas  brighten  the  for- 
ests in  May  ;  the  sallal,  thimble,  salmon,  and  blackberries  abound  in 
August.  Achli/s  trijillum^  the  Oregon  sweet-leaf,  or  deer-foot,  grows 
raiikly  everywhere,  and  Xanaimo  children  gather  bunches  of  this  en- 
thiringly  fragrant  leaf  for  sale  on  steamer  days.  Sportsmen  find  deer, 
Iteiir,  and  elk,  or  wapiti,  in  the  wilderness.  Grouse  and  Chinese  pheas- 
ants, which  have  spread  from  the  first  birds  imported  by  an  Oregon 
club,  abound.  The  smaller  streams  and  lakes  contain  trout  and  malma ; 
>alnion  will  take  a  spoon  at  the  least,  and  cod  are  easily  caught  in  the 
liarl)0ur.  Camping  outfits  for  a  stay  in  the  wilderness  may  l)e  secured 
at  Nanaimo,  and  it  is  possible  to  reach  many  remote  inlets  by  the 
smaUer  vessels  that  often  call. 

The  Lighthouse  ou  the  north  end  of  Entrance  Stand,  at  the  entrance 
of  Nanaimo  harbour  is  the  last  one  on  the  British  v'^olumbia  coast,  and 
Nanaimo  is  the  end  of  telegraph  lines. 

On  the  Vancouver  shore  the  Crovn  Moiintalna  rise  in  a  splendid 
line  of  peaks.  Mt.  Albert  Edward  (tsOns  ft.)  is  due  W.  of  Texada 
l>land.  Alexandra  Peak  (6,894  ft.)  is  next  in  line  northward,  followed 
\)\  Ciown  Mountain  (6,100  ft.)  and  by  Victoria  Peak  (7,500  ft.),  the 
laticr  lying  due  W.  of  Discovery  Passage. 


The  Upper  End  of  the  C>ulf  of  Georgia. 

The  Great  Fiords  and  the  Salish  ViUa(jes. 

Sechelt  Arm  of  Jervis  Inlet  contains  a  great  tidal  rapid  whose 
roar  is  heard  for  miles,  and  which  only  needs  to  be  exploited  to  obscure 
the  fame  of  the  Norwegian  Malstrom  and  Salstroni. 


'•!  '1: 


1 

i 

I 

i. 
1' 
f 

ll 

:' 
1:: 

!! 
lii 

Ml  ■ 


|ll|ilj,;Hri 


m'' 


*i 


!■'  r.f 


ill 


20 


TIIK   INLA.ND   SEA. 


Sechelt  MiMsion  in  Trail  Ray,  across  the  ^tilf  from  Nanaiino,  is 
a  tiily  villajro  witli  a  large  Roman  Catholic  church,  where  excursion 
steamers  often  touch.  A  first  representation  of  the  Passion  Play  was 
f^iven  here  in  1890,  anil  native  communicants  from  all  parts  of  British 
Columbia  assi'tnblcl  for  the  reli<j;lous  ceremonies,  which  occupied  three 
(lays.  These  scenes  from  the  life  and  crucifixion  of  Christ  were  re- 
peated at  the  mission  opposite  Vancouver  City  in  1891,  and  at  Mission 
Junction  on  the  Fraser  in  1892. 

Phosphorescent  seas  of  wonderful  brilliancy  are  often  witnessed  in 
the  Gulf  of  Geoigia,  and  black  whales  nuiy  always  be  seen  8[)outing 
singly  or  in  schools. 

Texada  Island  is  27  miles  in  length  and  4  in  breadth,  with  Mt.  Shej)- 
herd  (2,90(»  ft.)  rising  above  its  many  ridges.  There  arc  Liige  deposits 
of  coarse  magnetic  iron-ore,  containing  only  '003  per  cent  of  phos- 
phorus, valuable  for  steel-making,  and  enhanced  in  value  by  the  neigh- 
bouring coal-beds. 

JJesolation  Sound  and  Bute  Inlet  indent  the  mainland,  the  latter 
the  most  famous  fiord  along  the  gulf.  It  is  40  miles  in  length,  often 
less  than  a  mile  in  width,  and  the  precipitous  mountain  walls  rise  from 
4,000  to  8,000  ft.  in  height.  Soundings  of  400  fathoms  have  been 
made  without  bottom,  and  the  clear  waters  arc  so  darkly  green  as  to  be 
almost  black.  Dense  forests  clothe  these  walls ;  glaciers,  snow-banks, 
atid  cascades  gleam  among  the  green.  Lord  Duiferin  an<l  the  Marquis 
of  Lome  began  the  praise  of  Bute  Inlet  as  the  scenic  gem  of  the 
coast,  iuul  its  reputation  increases  yearly. 

The  Capi'  3fud(/e  village  marks  the  limit  of  the  Salish  tribes  which 
inhabit  the  coast  between  it  and  the  head  of  Puget  Sound.  The  Salish 
are  last  dying,  and  some  have  become  extinct  within  a  decade.  They 
had  a  totemic  organization,  possessed  many  arts,  permanent  homes, 
seaworthy  and  graceful  canoes,  when  the  first  whites  came.  Their 
black,  shovel-nosed  dug-out  canoes  make  pictures  in  the  still  waters  be- 
tween wooded  shores,  and  the  Chinook  canoe  is  said  to  have  given  the 
lines  for  the  American  clipper  ships  of  the  China  and  Kast  Indian 
trade.  They  ate  a  superior  people,  differing  thus  from  the  canoe  Indi- 
ans of  South  America,  and  (piite  as  aggressive  as  the  meat-eating  tribes 
of  the  interior.  Cape  kludge  potlatches,  or  feasts,  where  the  host 
divides  all  his  property  among  his  guests,  are  f anions,  one  in  1892  rep- 
resenting an  expenditure  of  |!6,000  in  the  gifts  distributed.  In  1888  the 
neighbouring  Cowichans  had  accumulated  personal  property  estimated 
at  .$407,000.  The  British  Columbia  Legislature  forbade  potlatches, 
and  in  one  year  their  wealth  decreased  to  $80,000 — the  prohibition 
of  potlatches  quenching  all  their  desire  to  accumulate.     Before   the 


THE    INLAND   SEA. 


21 


whites  came  the  sign-lnnpim}:o  was  used  hctweon  tlie  tribes.  Since 
tlicn  the  general  nuMliuiii  ol'  corniimuicatioii,  with  whites  as  well,  has 
litfii  the  Chinook  .laifion  cotnponnded  by  H.  H.  Co.'s  factors  from 
Salisli,  French,  Eiifrlish,  Russian,  and  Kanalva  speech.  It  has  a  vocahu- 
liirv  l>ut  no  jrraniniar,  and  one  (luickly  learns  its  si;nple  arran;iements 
troiii  the  printed  numnals,  and  finds  it  a  usefid  accoin|)lishnient  on  the 
(oa.-t.  .SVcvLs/f,  tiie  Chinook  name  for  an  Indian,  is  a  corruption  of  the 
Frt'iuh  snnviif/f.  Klahiut'i/nh,  the  usual  salutation,  is  the  native  equiva- 
lent for  t'le  "  Clark,  how  are  you  y  "  as  a  white  trader  was  always 
greeted  by  arriving  friends. 


Seymour  Narrows  or  Yaculta  Rapids — The  Great 

3Ial»ttroin. 

Discovery  Passage,  23  miles  in  length,  separates  Vancouver 
from  ]'(i/(le>t  Inland,  and  the  geological  formations  of  its  banks  show 
lidw  recently  the  two  islands  were  one.  Midway  in  the  pass  are  the 
Seymour  Narrows,  named  for  the  British  admiral,  but  known  to  the 
natives  as  }'ia'////fl,  the  home  of  an  evil  spirit,  who  lived  in  its  depths 
and  delighted  to  snatch  canoes  and  devour  their  occupants,  and  to  vex 
and  toss  whales  about.  The  Richards  and  Pen«ler  surveys  reduced  the 
falth'd  dangers  to  exactness.  I'hc  Karrows  are  a  mile  and  a  half  long 
and  less  than  half  a  mile  wide,  and  the  ebbing  tide  from  the  (rnlf  of 
(/lorrfia  races  through  at  a  speed  varying  from  (»  to  10  and  12  knots 
an  liour.  Ripple  Hock  lifts  a  knife-edged  reef  for  3<>0  yards  down 
the  centre  of  the  pass,  with  18  ft.  of  water  over  these  pinnacles,  and 
(h'pths  of  1(M)  fathoms  around  them.  Ships  are  timed  to  reach  the 
Narrows  during  the  favourable  quarter  hour  before  or  after  the  ten 
minutes  of  slack  water,  when  the  whirlpool  boils  and  simmers  mildly. 
The  few  who  have  inadvertently  gone  through  with  the  racing  tide 
have  seen  the  whole  gorge  white  with  foam,  waves  rearing  and  break- 
ing madly,  deep  holes  boring  down  into  the  water,  fountains  boiling  up 
like  geysers,  and  ships  reeling,  shivering,  and  staggering  in  the  demon's 
hold.  Ships  steaming  12  knots  an  hour  have  made  but  a  cable's  head- 
way in  two  hours,  and  have  often  been  swept  back  to  await  the  favour- 
ahU'  half  hour  in  the  many  convenient  coves  near.  Many  vessels  were 
wrecked  before  the  pass  was  fully  known. 

The  U.  S.  S.  Saranae,  a  second-rate  side-wheel  steamer  of  11  guns, 
was  lost  in  Seymour  Narrows  June  18,  1875.  It  entered  the  [)ass  too 
lute,  was  caught  in  the  current,  and  struck  broadside  on  Ripple  Rock. 
It  swung  off,  was  headed  for  the  Vancouver  shore,  and  made  fast  with 
liawsers  to  trees ;  but  there  was  only  time  to  lower  a  boat  with  the  pa- 


::if 


It 

Ir   1 
1 

t 

nil'' 


22 


THK    INLAND   SKA. 


pels  iiiui  a  few  provisions,  when  tlie  Sitrauar  siiiik  rtti  fntlioiiirt  deep, 
and  the  crew  cainped  on  sliore  wliile  a  Hniall  boat  went  to  Nanaiino 
for  help.  In  IHN'2  tlie  V.  S.  S.  Wmhiisitt  ventured  within  Yaculta's 
reahu  too  late,  was  seized  l»y  the  demon,  (hawn  <h)wn  in  a  \A)i  eddv  and 
hurled  a^aiiibt  tlie  rock  with  such  force  that  ItH  falsj  keel  was  entirely 
torn  a  way.  Iti  \XH'.\  the  little  ecastin;;  steamer  (Irdftiihr,  retunnnu 
with  the  i)at'k  and  erew  from  northern  canneries,  took  lire  as  it  entered 
the  Nariows.  The  hemp  rudder-ropes  hniiied ;  the  frantic  passen^rers 
leaped  overboard  as  the  hoat  cnreeiu'd  and  whirletl  in  the  rapii;-*  ;  the 
eaptnin  was  sucked  down  in  an  eddy  with  his  life-preserver  belted  on, 
and  few  escaped.  The  rin;:s  of  floatinfi  kelp  that  drift  in  the  race-way 
are  said  to  be  the  (jueiies  of  tin-  7<>  Chinese  lost  with  the  1 1  nippier. 
The  Xorwefjian  Malstroni,  lyinji  between  the  n.ost  southerly  islancls  of 
the  liolfoden  f^roup,  attains  a  speed  of  t'»  knots  an  hour,  only  when  ii 
westerly  ji,  ile  aids  the  tide  :  and  the  j^reater  Salstrom  in  behind  Tiomso 
has  but  a  little  strouL'er  current  at  the  ebb. 


!• . ,:' 


The  Ifeiid  of  Vancouver  I»4land. 

Johmtom  Sfriiif,  55  miles  in  lenjiith,  and  fironi/Zifo/i  Sfrnlf,  14  miles 
in  length,  varying  from  1  to  2  miles  in  width,  continue  the  doid)lc 
panorama  of  forested  slopes  antl  bold  mountain  walls. 

The  Alert  Hay  cannery,  on  the  H.  side  of  Cormorant  Island,  has 
drawn  a  village  of  150  Kwakiutl  Indians  from  the  abandoned  village 
of  Cheslakee,  at  the  mouth  of  the  Nimi)kish  lUver,  Missionaries  have 
not  been  able  to  do  anything  with  these  people.  The  most  southerly 
totem-pole,  and  the  oidy  one  kno»n  to  have  been  erected  on  the  coast 
within  ten  years,  is  to  be  seen  in  front  of  the  chief's  house  at  Alert 
Bay.  The  graveyard  is  most  interesting,  with  painted  boxes,  carved 
poles,  many  Hags  and  streame'-s.  The  eccentric  fashions  in  head-flatten- 
ing ceased  with  the  Salish  people  at  the  line  of  Caj)e  Mudge,  and  the 
Kwakiutl  cranium  was  elongated,  and  drawn  up  into  pyramidal  shape. 
A  few  very  aged  people  show  the  peculiar  «)..!)  es  of  skull  once  in 
vogue,  and  fine  s[)ecimens  have  been  obtained  from  graves.  The 
Alert  Bay  Indians  will  give  the  old  peace  and  festival  dances  in  cos- 
tume, if  a  suflieient  purse  is  made  up  by  their  white  visitors. 

Fort  Rupert,  an  old  H.  B.  Co.  post,  is  in  Braver  ILtrhour,  9  mile? 
beyond  Browjhton  Strait.  The  fort  was  built  in  18 10, and  stiongly  de- 
fended because  of  the  natives  near  it  and  the  frecjuent  visits  of  the 
Haidas  and  northern  tribes.  There  was  a  heavy  earthquake  shock  in 
August,  1865,  and  in  1807  the  ranehe  was  bombarded  by  H.  B.  M.  S.  Clio 
until  the  tribe  surrendered  some  hidden  murderers.  Since  then  the  Kwa- 
kiutls  have  been  peaceable  and  their  annals  eventless.     The  young 


lioiiiH  deep, 
to  Naiiaiino 
11  Viu'ultu's 
i;:  eddy  ai)d 
was  nitiit'ly 
r,  n'tiii'iiiiiL' 
i.s  it  ontcrcd 
'  i)as.-ii'iif;ors 
rapius  ;  the 
r  bfltt'd  (HI, 
lie  nice- way 
ic  11  liipphr. 
ly  i.-^laii(ls  ot 
only  when  a 
lind  Ti'onisu 


//^  \\  miles 
tlje  doulth' 

Island,  has 

oncd  villaf^t' 

)naries  iiavo 

t  southerly 

in  the  eoast 

e  at  Alert 

xes,  carved 

ead-tlatten- 

0,  and  the 

idal  shape. 

ill  once  in 

ives.     The 

ces  in  cos- 

ui\  9  miles 
tiongly  de- 
isits  of  the 
e  shock  in 

}\.  S.  Clio 
1  the  Kwa- 

he  younfi 


I 


m 


fliT' 


ml 


' 

QUEEN   CHARLOTTE    SOUND   TO   MILBANK    HOUND.       23 

iMon  desert  the  village  every  summer,  to  work  at  mills  and  canneries. 
Tlio  block  houses  and  gateway  of  the  old  fort  remain,  and  also  the  chief's 
house,  a  famous  old  lodge  100  ft.  long  and  80  ft.  wide,  resting  on 
carved  corner  posts.  The  great  potlatch  dish,  in  shape  of  a  recumbent 
man,  holding  focd  for  100  people,  is  shown.  Coal-mines  were  worked 
hy  the  H.  B.  Co.  before  the  Nanaimo  veins  were  discovered,  and  the 
cleared  fields  and  gardens  are  still  productive. 

Beyond  the  Broughton  Archipelago  there  are  several  fine  fiords, 
the  narrow  King  Come  Inlet  having  an  IS-mile-long  wall  of  snow-peaks  ; 
iimi  .)f<Ke)izie  Sound  vertical  walls  that  almost  shut  the  sunlight  from 
tlic  flooded  gorge,  that  is  only  foreground  and  approach  to  the  noble 
poak  Vancouver,  named  foi  Sir  John  Philip  Stephens,  of  the  Admiralty. 

At  the  W.  end  of  Galiano  Island  there  is  a  spire  of  rock  crowning 
a  promontory  l,2i)0  ft.  high,  which  Admiral  Phelps,  U.S.N  ,and  Hon. 
J.  G.  Swan  argue  to  be  "  the  great  headland  or  island  with  an  exceed- 
ing high  pinnacle  or  spired  rock  like  a  pillar  thereon  "  which  Juan  do 
Ftica  saw.  They  show  how  easily  the  Greek  may  I "ve  sailed  for 
iO  days  behind  Vancouver  Island,  and,  believing  t.ie  ocean  beyond 
Queen  Charlotte  Sound  to  be  the  Atlantic,  retraced  his  course  from 
this  pinnacle  in  good  faith. 


From  Queen  Charlotte  Sound  to  Milbank  Sound. 

At  Queen  Charlotte  Sound  there  is  a  40  mile  gap  in  the  island 
holt.  Captain  Gray  first  charted  the  expanse  as  Pintard  Sound,  for 
'ihe  Boston  ov  nor  of  his  vessel.  V>»ncouver  recharted  it  as  named  by 
Captiiin  Wedgchorough,  of  the  Experimcdf,  in  1786.  Sometimes  the 
swcl!  of  the  outer  ocean  may  be  felt,  buc  more  often  it  is  a  stilled  ex- 
panse, where  mists  and  fogs  perpetually  hover  and  plav  fantastic  tricks 
among  the  ragged  islands  and  tho  near  snow- peaks.  Piloting,  which  is 
all  by  sight  along  this  coast,  is  often  by  echo  along  this  reach,  and  the 
mariiier's  acute  senses  tell,  as  the  sound  is  flung  l)ack,  how  the  shores 
are  trending,  and  have  even  detected,  by  a  strange  quality  in  the  echo, 
tho  presence  of  another  ship's  sails.  Feeling  around  its  rocky  edges, 
both  of  Vancouver's  ships  struck  ;  and  in  July,  1S89,  the  U.  S.  S.  .:»'«- 
ii'(i)iir  was  lost  on  an  unknown  rock  in  Shadurll  J^asmge. 

Tlie  Kuro  Siwo  strikes  full  against  this  entrance,  on  its  recurved 
course,  and  its  v/arm  air,  condensed  by  Mt.  Strphens  and  the  white  host, 
lies  in  solid  banks  upon  the  water,  in  and  out  of  which  one  fa.<ses  as 
tlii'uiigh  a  door  ;  or  the  tips  of  a  ship's  masts  sparkle  in  the  sunlight  of 


r'l 


i  ' 


By 

■llpllj  i' 


24      QUEEN   CHAKI.OTTE    SOUM)   TO   MILBANK   SOUND. 

a  high  T;vhite  plain,  the  hull  invi.sihle.  Bauds  of  fog  pencil  the  hillside 
with  Japanese  conventional  cloud  effects ;  a  gray  canopy  truncates  the 
mountain  pyramids ;  or  filmy,  downy  tatters  of  clouds,  mere  mist  trailers 
finer  than  cobweb,  drift  across  green  heights,  are  tangled  in  the  forest, 
or  gathered  in  still  ravines.  Every  branch  and  twig  sparkles  with  vivid 
greenness  in  this  dewy  air,  washed  clean  with  perpetual  mists. 

The  Kuro  Siwo  gives  the  British  Columbia  coast  the  climate  of 
Ireland,  of  Devonshire  and  Cornwall,  and  fosters  a  far  richer  vegetsition 
on  shore,  all  ferns,  bushes,  and  thirsty  plants  growing  as  in  a  hot-house. 
In  forests  as  dense  as  any  that  Stanley  describes,  and  choked  with  an 
undergrowth  through  which  an  explorer  must  cut  his  way,  water- 
courses, and  the  paths  made  to  them  by  bears,  are  the  only  possible 
footways  below  the  level  of  a  thousand  feet.  The  Menz'e  and  Merton 
spruces,  and  the  Douglas  fir,  stand  as  closely  together  as  blades  of 
grass,  and  the  eye  sees  only  leagues  and  leagues  of  tree-tops  on  every 
slope  and  shore,  their  foliage  so  intensely  green,  when  near  at  hand, 
blending  and  toning  to  the  richest  bronze,  grey  and  olive  in  the  dis- 
tance, and  often  glowing  in  the  late  afternoon  as  i.'.  the  foliage  reflected 
some  concealed  colour,  or  the  slopes  were  clad  in  blooming  heather.  \o 
forest  fires  darken  the  air  beyond  Vancouver's  shores,  and  the  scar  of  a 
land-slide  or  wind-break  is  clothed  with  green  by  a  second  season.  A 
crevice  in  the  rock  for  safe  lodging,  a  handful  of  ^and  or  gi-avel  to 
cover  its  roots,  and  a  young  spruce  will  prick  forth  and  spread  its  thin 
branches,  until  in  time  its  own  needles  form  a  soil  and  support  thick 
layers  of  moss.  A  whole  forest  thus  thrives  on  air  and  rocks,  the  trees 
crowding  one  another  in  their  growth,  and,  with  no  tap  I'oot  to  steady 
them,  they  fall  by  acres  before  a  storm  wind.  Their  own  weight 
often  pulls  the  thin  skin  of  earth  from  the  rocks,  and  acres  of  perpen- 
dicular forest  go  thundering  down  into  tlie  bottomless  cliannels,  and 
Nature  decorates  the  heights  afresh.  Madronos  disappear,  and  the  fa- 
mous yellow  or  Alaska  cedars  ( Cuprfssis  nufkaKrmin)  of  the  Northwest 
coast  show  in  the  forest  from  Fort  Rupert  northward. 


■■■'Mi 


Nakwakto  Rapids. 

The  Great  Mnhtrom  or  Reversible  I'idal  Cataract. 

Belize  Inlet  is  the  strangest  piece  of  glacial  carving  on  the  coast 
as  it  zigzags  and  straggles  by  many  deep  cuts  to  the  foot  of  ^ft.  Ste- 
phem.  It  holds  a  malstrom  twice  the  strength  of  Seymour  Narrows, 
in  the  long,  narrow  gateway  that  gives  entrance  to  its  wonderland. 
There  are  Indian  villages  along  those  canons,  but  it  is  only  for  ten  min- 
utes at  a  time  that  a  canoe  can  pass  the  Npkwakto  Rapids  to  reach 
them.  In  the  first  narrows  of  Slingnby  Channel^  which  are  but  200 
yards  wide,  there  is  a  maelstrom  where  the  tide  makes  9  knots  an  hour 
at  the  tum.  The  canon  continues  for  5  miles  and  widens  to  400  yards 
at  the  Nakwakto  Rapids,  the  Kafitsinilla  of  the  natives,  and  the  most 


UJSD. 

the  hillpide 
uncates  the 
mist  trailers 
1  the  forej't, 
;s  with  vivid 
sts. 

!  climate  of 
r  vegetation 
a  hot-house, 
ked  with  an 
way,  water- 
nly  possible 
and  Merton 
18  blades  of 
3ps  on  every 
lar  at  hand, 
e  in  the  dis- 
age  reflected 
leather.  No 
the  scar  of  a 
I  season.  A 
t)r  gravel  to 
read  its  thin 
upport  thick 
ks,  the  trees 
)ot  to  steady 
own  weight 
s  of  perpen- 
lannels,  and 
■,  and  the  fa- 
le  Northwest 


jn  the  coast 

of  Mt.  Stc- 

ir  Narrows, 

ronderland. 

for  ten  min- 

[ds  to  reach 

Ire  but  200 

)ts  an  hour 

400  yards 

Id  the  most 


QUEEN  CHARLOTTE  SOUND  TO  MI  LEAN  K  SOUND.   25 

leinarkable  place  of  its  kind  on  the  coast.  The  ebb  tide  races  out  at  a 
speed  of  15  and  20  knots  an  hour,  the  waves  running  up  the  face  of 
Turret  Isle,  which  rises  80  ft.  above  the  water  in  mid-channel.  There 
is  magnificent  scenery  in  the  labyrinth  of  farther  inlets,  and  at  the  end 
of  one  arm  there  is  a  peak  5,000  ft.  high  which  easily  acquired  the 
name  of  Perpendicular  Mountain. 

The  Coast  of  British  Columbia. 

The Inmle  P(is,sa[/e  through  the  Columfnan  Archipdago. 

Fitzhugh  Sound,  first  in  the  line  of  channels  separating  the  Co- 
lumbian A.rchipelago  from  the  mainland  of  i!ritish  Columbia,  trends 
SO  mi'es  due  N.  a  smooth  river  running  between  mountain  banks. 
■lb.  Iiin  its  entrance,  on  the  shores  of  Calvert  Island,  is  Oatsoalis 
V .  Suiety  Cove,  a  mariner's  refuge  since  Duncan's  time  ( 1787).  Van- 
couver anchored  and  repaired  ships  there  before  returning  to  Nootka  in 
1 792,  and  his  men  explored  the  neighbouring  inlets  in  small  boats.  Mail 
steamers  and  canoes  rest  there  when  fog,  storm,  or  darkness  prevent 
their  crossing  the  sound.  In  August,  1885,  the  P.  C.  S.  S.  Ancon  broke 
her  main  cylinder  on  her  way  southward  and  was  ancliored  in  the  cove 
for  ten  days,  while  Captain  James  Carroll  made  the  221 -mile  voyage  to 
Nanaimo  in  a  life-boat  in  four  days  and  returned  with  help.  The  pas- 
sengers made  it  a  gala  season  of  adventure  and  ex[)l()ration,  and  re- 
gretted leaving.  Mt.  Buxton,  3,430  ft.,  is  the  sharp-pointed  peak  on 
the  Calvert  shor:. 

Rivers  l!  iti.  ^he  next  indentation  of  the  mainland  coast,  pene- 
trates 20  m*  it  "..!  .i.  widening  into  loch-like  expanses  so  sheltci-ed  l»y 
the  precipitous  Li'ig'rs  End  ranges  that  it  is  clear  and  sunny  within  when 
the  Sound  is  bankti' ^'uh  fog.  There  are  three  canneries  at  the  end, 
and  the  C.  P.  N.  steamers  call  regularly  during  the  summer  season. 
The  Bella  Bellas'  village  of  Owikino  is  near  the  krger  eanaery,  but 
presents  little  of  interest  in  the  way  of  poles  or  grave.-.  Two  canot^ 
loads  of  Owikino  seal-hunters  were  killed  at  Sorrow  Island  by  the  Kit- 
kiihtlas,  a  Tsimsiun  tribe,  in  January,  1892,  and  a  bitter  Indian  war  re- 
sulted ;  war  canoes  carried  chanting  braves  in  paint  and  regalia  up 
ii  1  down  J"'  .'jhannels  seeking  foes,  and  the  constables  recpiircd  the 
aid  of  gunbo'iu  7.  s^  ppress  and  settle  the  dilheidty. 

Vancouver  explored  Bnrke  Canal   and  its   branches,   Bentimk 
Ann  and  Dean  Canal  in   1793,  his  sectmd  season  on  the  Northwest 
Coast.    There  is  a  large  native  village  at  the  end  of  Bentinck  Ann, 
8 


P'  •! 


i,V 


,1 
t  I 


\i\ 


26      QUEEN   CHARLOTTE   SOUND  TO  MILBANK    SOUND. 

60  miles  from  the  sea,  wliere  Sir  Alexander  Mackenzie  completed  the 
first  crossing  of  the  continent  of  North  America  in  1703.  The  Bilqulas, 
or  Bella  Coolas,  inhabiting  these  fiords,  are  an  estray  branch  of  the  Sa- 
lish  people,  isolated  in  the  heart  of  the  Kwakintls  country,  and  they  re- 
ceived Mackenzie  hos{)itably,  and  informed  him  tliat  "  Macubah  "  (Van- 
couver) had  jtist  been  there.  Dr.  Dawson  say.s  that  the  Bilqulas'  trail 
to  the  interior  and  the  upper  Frasor  has  existed  from  time  immemo- 
rial, and  the  Tinneh  tribes  called  it  the  Grease  Troif,  because  of  the 
supplies  of  oulachon  and  other  oil  acquired  in  trade  with  the  Bilqulas. 
There  was  a  II.  B.  Co.  post  at  this  important  point,  and  in  Cariboo 
times  many  prospectors  reached  the  diggings  over  the  old  Indian  trail 
fiom  Buike  Canal. 

Cascade  Inlet,  in  Dean  Ciral.  is  the  Geiranger  of  this  coast,  so 
strmgely  wanting  in  great  wu  '  ''  The  fiord  is  11  miles  long  and 
three  quarters  of  a  mile  wide,  innumerable  waterfalls   leaping 

from  its  tremendous  cliffs.  Van.  iver  wrote  that  these  cascades 
"  were  extremely  grand,  and  by  much  the  largest  and  most  tremendous 
we  had  ever  beheld,  their  impetuosity  sending  currents  of  air  across 
the  canal." 

One  of  Vancouver's  men.  Carter,  died,  and  others  were  made  numb 
and  ill  for  days,  from  eating  mussels  in  Poison  Cove.  Special  provi- 
dence, far  more  than  Duncan's  or  Caamano's  charts,  helped  Vancouver  to 
successfully  navigate  in  this  region,  where  a  maze  of  water-ways,  and  hun- 
dreds of  eul-de-ftars  test  the  pilot's  memory.  One  attractive  little  open- 
ing in  Hunter  Island  is  known  as  Ilie  Trap,  and  a  vessel  getting  in  can- 
not turn  around  nor  make  a  tour  of  the  blockading  islet  wiiich  is  the  bait 
to  the  trap,  but  must  be  pulled  out  backward.  An  English  gunboat 
was  once  lost  in  this  labyrinth  region  for  two  weeks ;  and  when  Mr. 
Seward  visited  Alaska,  in  1809,  hi;,  pilot  also  lost  the  way.  The  Bella 
Bellas  have  a  bad  name,  and  when  they  took  one  aboard  to  steer  the 
ship  through  to  Finlayson^s  Channel,  a  pile  of  silver  dollars  was  put 
before  the  pilot  as  the  reward  for  a  safe  passage,  and  pistols  pointed 
at  either  ear  promised  other  reward  for  any  treachery. 

Jacobsen's  Inlet  is  named  for  the  Tromso  scientist,  who  has 
made  large  collections  and  long  ethnological  reports  to  the  Bergen  and 
Berlin  museums,  and  once  took  seven  I>ella  Coolas  to  Europe,  There 
is  a  splendid  watcfall  800  ft.  high  in  this  inlet. 

Lama  Passage,  named  for  an  old  H.  B.  Co.  ship,  is  a  beautifully 
wooded  way,  its  northern  shore  broken  at  one  place  by  a  graveyard 
with  kennels  of  tombs  painted  with  totemic  designs,  and  many  flags  and 
streamers  flying  from  tall  poles.  In  an  opposite  cove,  on  Campbell 
Island,  the  remnant  of  the  Bella  Bellas  are  gathered  in  a  model  village, 
with  mission,  church,  school,  store,  and  cabins  shining  with  whitewash, 
and  so  dazzling  one  with  their  immaculate  array  that  passers-by  dis- 
credit the  curdling  tales  of  the  past.  They  were  long  the  most  treach- 
erous, bloodthirsty,  and  turbulent  tribe,  and  made  the  life  of  the  H.  B. 


i;^^l^:i 


FROM   MILBANK   SOUND   TO   DIXON   ENTRANCK. 


27 


Co.  agents  such  a  dangerous  impriponiDent  that  the  post  of  Fort  Afc- 
Lou(/hlin  was  only  maintained  for  a  few  years  after  its  establishment  i» 
18'.U.  In  1868  the  company  tried  it  again,  and  the  new  fashions  in 
Btl/a  Bella  have  made  life  profitable  and  worth  living. 

From  Milbank  Sound  to  Dixon  Entrance. 

7^he  Great  Sfcnie  Region. 

There  are  only  8  miles  of  Milbank  Sound  to  be  crossed  to  re- 
gain the  shelter  of  the  great  islands  again,  and  it  is  so  fringed  with 
islets  that  a  ship  is  often  past  it  before  its  passengers  have  suspected 
aiiv  opening  to  the  ocean.  The  finest  scenery  on  the  :-teainer's  regular 
course  through  the  Columbian  Archipelago  lies  between  Milbank  Sound 
and  DtJton  Entrance,  a  double  panorama  of  unbroken  beauty  20(»  miles 
in  length.  The  tourist  cannot  afford  to  lose  an  hour  of  this  scenic 
watch.  Green  slopes  are  reflected  in  greener  waters,  every  tree  and 
twig  growing  double,  and  only  bands  of  algae  or  tide-washed  rock  tell 
wliere  reflections  part.  The  shores  rise  almost  perpendicularly  for 
1,(»0(»  or  1,500  ft.,  above  which  snow  clad  ridges  rise  as  high  again, 
and  the  channels  vary  from  an  eighth  of  a  nnle  to  2  miles  in  width. 
Tall  trees  climb  and  cling  to  these  walls  like  vines,  and  cascades  slip- 
ping out  from  the  snow-banks  flash  among  the  green  and  go  singing  to 
tlie  sea.  The  mountain  contours  tell  where  lakes  must  lie  in  rocky 
amphitheatres,  and  overflow  in  tliese  roaring  ribbons. 

Finlayson  Channel  is  24  miles  in  length,  from  1  to  2  miles 
in  v.idth,  with  depths  of  50  and  150  fathoms.  Helmet  Mountain  on  the 
\V.,  and  Stripe  Mountain  marked  with  the  line  of  a  great  land  slide,  are 
at  the  entrance  of  the  channel.  Bell  Peak  (1,280  ft.),  on  Cone  Island,  is 
eonimonly  known  as  China  Hat,  from  its  outlines.  The  village  of 
China  Hat  and  fantastic  graveyard  are  seen  from  tlie  C.  P.  N.  Co.'s 
steamers,  whicn  regularly  call  for  mails.  Sarah  Mnnd  divides  the 
clianners  northern  end.  Its  landmarks  are  two  waterfalls  that  leaj) 
from  the  snow-banks  and  descend  in  full  view  to  the  sea.  Tolmie 
Ciiannel,  W.  of  Sarah  Island,  is  15  miles  in  length,  and  from  a  half 
niile  to  a  mi!  in  width.  The  scenery  increases  in  charn)  as  the  ships 
pass  through  Iliehish  Narrows,  a  quarter  of  a  mile  in  width  at  the  head 
of  ijarah  Island,  and  enters 

Graham  Reach,  17  miles  long  and  less  than  u  mile  in  width. 
McKay  Reach  continues  the  magnificent  panorama  for  the  next  8  milee. 


m 


i:m 


28 


FROM   MILBANK    rtOUND   TO   DIXON    ENTRANCE. 


The  mountains  rise  more  aJu'uptly,  f^ranite  cliffs  tower  perpendicularly, 
their  front  glistening  with  glacier  polish  and  latticed  over  with  fine 
cascades ;  more  waterfalls  and  land-slides  are  reflected  in  the  glassy 
reaches;  great  alcoves  on  the  li<  iglits  betray  the  hidden  lakes,  and 
side  canons,  lesser  Yosemites,  lead  away  into  the  wilderness  of  PrimcKs 
Royal  hlaiul.  In  McKay  Reach  and  Wright  Sound  there  is  no  bottom 
at  225  fathoms. 

At  Wright  Sound  submerged  peaks  stand  as  islands ;  six  diverg- 
ing channels  open,  and  the  tourist  witli  an  Admiralty  Chart  is  as  puzzled 
as  were  Caamano  and  Vancouver  a  century  ago,  to  know  which  way 
leads  on  or  out  to  the  ocean. 

C«nrducr  Canal  or  Inlet* 

Ursula  and  Devadaiion  Chamuis,  behind  Gribbel  Island,  lead  to 
the  grand  canal  which  Vancouver  named  for  Vice-Admiral  Sir  Alan 
Gardner,  who  recommended  that  Vancouver  be  given  charge  of  the 
expedition  to  Nootka  and  the  Northwest  Coast.  Whidbey  explored  it 
in  that  summer  of  1793,  and  reported  that  it  was  "almost  an  entirely 
barren  waste,  nearly  destitute  of  wood  and  verdure,  and  presenting  to 
tie  eye  one  rud«!  mass  of  almost  naked  rocks,  rising  into  rugged  moun- 
tains, more  lofty  than  any  he  had  before  seen,  whose  towering  summits 
seeming  to  overhang  their  bases  gave  them  a  tremendous  appearance. 
The  whole  was  covered  with  perpetual  ice  and  snow  that  reached,  in 
the  gullies  formed  between  the  n ')untains,  close  down  to  the  high- 
water  mark,  and  many  waterfalls  of  various  dimensions  were  seen  to 
descend  in  every  direction  " — a  description  that  might  as  coldly  de- 
scribe the  Sogne  Fiord,  the  Xaerodal,  the  Yosemite,  or  any  other  rival 
canon's  walls.  But  Mr.  Whidbey  went  the  50  miles  of  its  length, 
"  where  it  terminated,  as  usual,"  and  the  explorer  gave  up  getting  into 
Hudson  Bay  by  that  route. 

Tourists  consider  the  Gardner  Canal,  or  Kitbip  Caiion,  the 
culmination  of  the  scenery  of  the  British  Columbian  coast,  as  it  cleaves 
its  narrowing  way  for  50  miles  between  gloomy  walls,  to  where  a  great 
mountain  blocks  the  end,  with  glaciers  resting  on  its  sides,  cascades 
foaming  down  to  join  the  sea,  and  cannery  buildings  dwarfed  to  toys 
at  its  base. 

The  Old  Man,  a  conspicuous  landmark  on  the  canon  walls,  rises 
perpendicularly  2,000  ft.  from  the  water,  and  soundings  at  its  base- 
line give  a  depth  of  over  1 ,400  ft.  The  Mandir  has  been  laid  along- 
side, and  passengers  have  gathered  ferns  from  the  seamed  and  over- 
hanging wall.  Irving  Fal/x,  on  the  oi)posite  wall,  descend  2,000  ft.  by 
successive  leaps,  and  there  is  a  tine  frothy  fall  draining  the  glacier 


FKOM   Mir.BANK    BOUND    TO    DIXON    KNTKANC^;.         29 

iiliovc  the  Price  cannery.  The  KitbipK^  who  inhabit  the  summer  Halni- 
uri  villnges  on  the  inlet  and  tlie  oulichan  village  on  the  Knnnnn  Kiver  at 
it-  head,  have  few  legends  connected  with  the  fiord.  Kitlup,  in  Tsimsian 
>jrc(Hli,  i.s  derived  from  Kit,  "the  people,"  and/^/w,  "sewed  <:arnu'nts  " 
— some  vague  distinction  of  earlier  days.  The  cannery  was  establislKd 
hy  Coiites,  the  Scotch  thread  manufacturer,  in  1S80.  C.  \\  N.  excur- 
sion steamers  first  visited  the  fiord  in  August,  IHIU. 

Tliere  is  a  village  of  Christian  Indians  at  ILirlhtj  llarhonr  who 
wi'ic  formerly  members  oi  .Mr.  Duncan's  conuuunity  at  Metlakahtla, 
mill  who,  without  siding  with  their  leader  or  the  bishop,  withdrew  to  their 
old  home  when  the  trouldes  began.  They  have  a  neat  village  with  a 
church,  school-house,  and  saw-mill,  and  the  men  find  summer  work  ut 
the  canneries. 

(•reiiville  Channel,  the  arrowy  reach  cutting  northwestwardly 
from  Wright  Sound  for  45  miles  without  l)end  or  break,  was  named  for 
tlic  Right  Hon.  Lord  Grenville,  Secretary  of  State,  who  gave  Vancou- 
ver his  commission  for  the  expedition  to  the  Northwest  Coast.  Un- 
til (iardner's  Inlet  was  exploited  (Jrenville  Channel  was  considered 
lust  of  Colund)ian  fiords,  and  the  deep,  glass-flt)ored,  ech(»l:)g  green  lane 
is  still  a  boasted  show  place  on  the  Alaska  route.  Lovv  Inld  is  the 
only  break  in  the  wall,  and  the  cannery  is  inched  in  a  fold  in  the  roc  ks, 
tliidugh  which  a  salmon  stream  cascades  from  a  high  lake.  Kight 
Hull.  William  P'dl\  Arrhrpelago  is  W.  of  Grenville  Channel,  and,  in 
( '/iiif/iain  Souiul,  Cape  Ibbetson  immortalizes  another  of  Vancouvei's 
fiic'iids  in  the  Admiraltv  office. 


The  Skecna  River. 

Skeena  River,  the  largest  stream  in  the  province  above  the 
I'raser,  is  navigable  by  small  steamers  for  OO  miles  above  its  mouth, 
and  for  200  miles  by  canoes.  Its  name — Skee,  "terror,  calamity,  trou- 
li'c,"  and  Eena^  "a  stream" — was  given  it  because  of  poisonous  shell- 
fish, which  killed  many  canoe-loads  of  the  fiist  people  who  came  around 
from  iVrttS's  River. 

It  is  the  greatest  salmon  stream  of  the  Northwest  Coast,  and  can- 
neries dot  its  shores  for  2(>  miles.  Vancouver  was  first  to  enter  it,  and 
named /*or<  Esdnffton  lor  a  naval  friend;  and  the  II.  B.  Co.'s  post  was 
Iniilt  there  in  1835,  adjoining  the  native  village  of  Spuksut.  It  is  the 
nmst  important  settlement  on  the  river,  with  a  hotel,  church,  school, 
tannery,  mill,  and  fish-refrigerating  works,  where  salmon  are  frozen, 
lurnic'tically  sealed,  and  shipped  to  England.     It  was  considered  as  a 


Ill, 


•i! 


:':!! 


'.     '1; 


if 


!!• 


111 


1, 


'ii 


J 


.'id 


I'liOM    MILBANK    SOUND   TO   DIXON    ENTRANCE. 


possible  tonniiius  for  the  C.  P.  R.,  behif^  450  miles  nearer  to  Asiatic 
ports  tlian  the  towns  at  the  mouth  of  the  Fraser,  and  its  distance  from 
the  United  States  boundary  and  imniunity  in  case  of  war  were  also  in  its 
favour.  Land  ac<iuired  a  great  value  with  the  prospect,  and  is  still  held 
at  $100  and  *.'{00  an  acre,  as  the  owners  believe  that  a  branch  of  the 
present  trunk  line  mtist  soon  come  northward. 

The  canneries  at  Port  Essington,  Claxton,  Cascade,  Aberdeen,  In- 
verness, Standard,  and  Muniford  Landinj]^  produce  over  80,000  cases  of 
salmon  each  season.  They  are  properly  restricted  by  Government  regu- 
lations, and  ollicers  are  stationed  on  the  river  during  the  season  to 
enforce  tliem.  Each  (ishing-boat  pays  a  tax  of  $20  a  season.  The 
size  of  the  nets  is  prescribed  by  law,  and  a  weekly  close  season  from 
Saturday  to  Monday  allow  a  fraction  of  the  salmon  to  reach  the  spawn- 
ing-grounds. Over  loo  fishing-l)oats  may  be  seen  at  once  when  the 
seines  are  being  set  or  drawn,  and  more  than  .$60,000  was  paid  in 
wages  on  the  Skeena  during  the  salmon  season  of  1S92.  The  work  is 
performed  by  Indians,  Chinese,  Japanese,  Greeks,  and  Scandinavians, 
and  many  remain  during  the  winter  to  work  in  the  saw-mills.  Lumber 
sells  at  fifty  cents  per  thousand  in  this  section. 

The  Kwakiutls'  empire  ceases  at  the  Skeena  mouth,  and  the  Tsim- 
.svVow,  the  greatest  of  the  coast  tribes,  occupy  the  coast  to  the  Alaska 
line.  The  Tsinisians  have  always  held  a  monopoly  of  the  inland  trade, 
maintained  a  grease  trail  with  the  interior,  <ind  kept  the  Tinneh  in  ad- 
mirable sul)joction.  The  few  of  these  mountaineers  occasionally  seen 
on  the  river  explain  why  Fort  Stager  and  Fort  Ilazelton,  on  the  upper 
Skeena,  remain  the  only  II.  B.  Co.'s  stockaded  posts. 

There  have  been  gold  fevers  and  great  diggings  on  the  upper  Skeena 
for  ;}0  years.  The  Omineca  excitement  at  the  head-waters  of  Peace 
River  in  IsVl  emptied  Skeena  camps,  but  in  1883-'84  there  was  a 
boom  on  Lome  Creek,  and  fishermen  dropped  their  nets,  and  loggers 
left  for  the  mines. 

C.  P.  N,  mail  and  excursion  steamers  do  not  go  beyond  Port  Essing- 
ton  ;  but  while  freight  is  being  handled,  tourists  have  often  opportunity 
to  take  launches  or  canoes  to  the  Hot  Springs  3  miles  across,  or  to  the 
waterfall,  12  miles  above.  The  Western  Union  Telegraph  Co.  built  its 
lines  to  Telegraph  Creek,  60  miles  above  the  mouth  of  the  Skeena  River, 
in  1865,  but  the  wires  thr(>ugh  the  dense  forest  country  were  soon 
wrecked. 


i 


H'f-; 


KIJoM    MirJI.VNK    SOUND    TO    DIXoX    KNTKAXCK. 


ni 


The  Tsiin^iaii  Poiiiiixula. 

Metlnktilitla — "the  open   I'lianiR'l,"  or  "tin-   i-lianiu-l   open   at 

riiluT  eiKl" — is  a  half-ruined  T.siuisian  village,  wliieh  for  27  years  was 

til-'  lioiiie  of  Mr.  Duncan's  eolony  of  Cliristianizetl  Tsiiiisians — an  actual 

AuMiiia,  a  living  Utopia  and  model  eoniniune  that  proved  much  that 

[.(ilitical  econ(jmists  doul>t. 

William  Duncan  was  sent  from  England  in  isr)7  as  a  lay  worker  for 
thit'hurcii  Mission  Society,  in  response  to  Admiral  I'revosi's  account  of 
tlir  tcrrilde  condition  of  luitive  life  on  this  coast.  Sir  .fames  Douglass 
mid  all  the  II.  13.  Co.'s  agents  tried  to  dissaa<le  him  from  going  to  Fort 
Siiiips(»n,  where  there  was  the  greatest  numlter  of  the  worst  savages  in 
ilic  I  egion.  Within  three  years  Mr.  Duncan  had  learned  the  language,  and 
,-u  attached  50  of  the  Tsimsians  to  him  that  they  went  with  him  to  this 
-itc  of  an  aliandoned  Tslmsian  settlement.  They  cleared,  drained,  and 
(ullivated  the  land,  built  a  village  of  titly  two-story  cottages,  a  church, 
mIiooMiousc,  saw-mill,  salmon  cannery,  and  co-o])evative  store.  They 
had  their  own  trading  schooner,  their  lirass  hand  a.iw  fire  luigade,  and  a 
village  council  of  elders  ordered  municipal  affairs.  Tliey  learned  to  do 
iar|)t'Mtcriiig,  house-building,  cabinet-making,  shoemaking,  coopering, 
laiiiiing,  and  rope-making.  Tlie  women  were  taught  to  weave  shawls, 
blankets,  and  cloth  from  mountain  goat  wool,  to  sew  and  cook.  It  was 
a  iii:idcl  industrial  settlement,  and  there  was  evolved  a  conununity  life 
more  ideal  than  anything  Plato  oi'  Dellamy  has  imagined.  Every  visitor, 
frnin  Lord  Dufferin  to  the  roughest  seafaring  frontiersman,  coidd  but 
praise  this  "  work  that  stands  ab>olutely  without  parallel  in  the  iiistory 


(if  Hussions." 


For  20  years  the  peace  and  prosperity  of  the  HOO  Metla- 
kaiitlans  were  unbroken.  In  IfSSl  Bishop  Ridley  objected  to  the  form 
nt  tlie  simple  religious  services  Mr.  Duncan  hehl,  and  the  ounssion  of 
tiic  communion  service ;  and  the  Society  was  disappointed  at  the  few 
converts  and  baptisms  reported.  After  continued  criticism  and  inter- 
ference, Mr.  Duncan  resigned  his  mission.  The  bishop  established 
liiiiiself  in  residence  and  failed  tc  win  the  respect  or  confidence  of  the 
licople.  lie  (piarrelled  with  the  head  men,  he  struck  them  with  his 
fi-ts,  he  carried  a  rifle,  and  called  for  a  man-of-war  to  protect  him. 
Tiie  people  petitioned  him  to  go  away,  and  begged  Mr.  Duncan  to  re- 
tinii.  Church  and  state  upheld  the  bishop;  the  community  property 
was  called  church  property.  Mr.  Duncan  returned,  and  suggested  emi- 
gration to  the  United  States  side.  When  ready  to  leave,  tlie  Canadian 
authorities  prevented  the  pilgrims  taking  anvthing  but  their  personal 
lirojjerty  with  them,  and  their  liouses,  mills,  and  works  were  left  intact 
as  church  property  for  the  120  of  80i>  who  remained  with  the  bishop. 
Tlic  empty  dwellings  fell  to  decay,  the  clearing  i)artly  relapsed  to  un- 
derbrush, the  large  church  was  partitioned  off  to  hold  the  handful  of 
worshippers,  and  when  a  few  years  later  the  bishop  departed,  the  ruin 
was  complete.  The  nearly  deserted  village  remains  as  a  monument  of 
misdirected  religious  zeal,  of  civil  injustice  and  oppression,  the  shame 
and  reproach  of  church  and  state. 


.'l , 

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■■(■  .  '• 

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?'U()M    MII-HANK    SOl'M)   TO    DIXoN    KNTHANCK. 


The  Japant'se  employed  in  the  Skeena  River  fisheries  have  built 
a  little  villaf^e  of  their  own  near  Mellakiihtla,  and  reproduced  a  corner 
of  .Iai)an.  They  have  their  own  schooner  and  cannery,  and  have 
iK'jrun  the  niunufacture  of  fancy  woodenware  for  the  tourist  trade. 
They  afliliate  readily  with  the  better  class  of  natives,  and,  besides  the 
resemblance  in  features  and  many  customs,  their  use  of  the  same  car- 
penters' and  carvers'  tools  amazes  the  white  residents. 

Fort  SinipNon,  the  most  important  II.  II.  Co.  post  on  the  coast, 
is  1()  miles  l)eyon(l  Afitlakahthi.  Rocks  and  ledf^es  oblige  ships  to 
make  a  great  detour  to  reach  the  wharf.  In  IHlil  the  II.  B.  Co.  built 
a  first  Kort  Simpson,  40  miles  up  the  Nass  River,  but  as  the  Tsimsians 
firmly  held  their  monopoly  of  trade  with  the  interior,  the  profitless 
isolation  only  endured  for  three  years,  and  the  post  was  moved  to  this 
bit  of  Tongass  ground  on  the  N.  shore  of  the  Tsimsian  peninsula.  It 
ictained  the  name  given  it  in  Inmour  of  Lieutenant  Simpson,  R.  N.,  who 
was  in  charge  of  the  company's  ship-building,  and  who  died  at  the  first 
fort  on  the  Nass. 

The  Tsimsians  had  originally  twelve  villages  on  the  Skeern,  for 
salmon-fishing,  twelve  on  the  Nass  for  the  oulachan-fishing,  and  twelve 
permanent  winter  villages  on  the  coast  near  to  halibut  grounds.  The 
i>eaches  about  Fort  Simi)son  had  been  common  camping  grounds  for 
all  tribes  for  more  than  a  century,  and  the  Tsimsians,  the  greatest 
traders  and  grease  merchants  of  the  coast,  did  a  large  business  at  their 
spring  fair,  when  the  oulachan  silvered  sound  and  inlets  for  miles,  and 
the  waters  were  alive  with  canoes  from  every  (juarter.  After  the  fort 
was  l)uilt  the  May  fairs  were  larger;  14,00(>  savages  were  often  en- 
camped around  the  stockade ;  the  beach  was  black  with  canoes,  and 
perpetual  revel  and  bedlam  went  on.  The  fort  was  often  attacked ; 
attempts  were  made  to  burn  it,  and  when  Sir  George  Simpson  enforced 
prohibition  in  trade  in  1842,  the  savages  withheld  their  furs  for  the 
Boston  ships,  wltich  continued  to  give  rum.  The  fur-trjide  has  now 
fallen  to  the  merest  fraction,  the  stockade  and  block-houses  have  been 
torn  down,  and  the  warehouses,  where  bear,  otter,  beaver,  fox,  mink, 
and  marten  skins  used  to  dangle  by  the  tens  of  thousands,  are  all  but 
empty.  The  11.  B.  Co.  fortress  is  only  a  general  country  store.  The 
day  of  beads,  red  calico,  and  toy  looking-glasses  has  gone  by,  and 
clocks,  fancy  lamps,  sewing-machines,  orguinettes,  silk  goods,  chem- 
ical fire-engines,  and  marble  tombstones  are  objects  of  Tsimsian  pride. 

The  Iu'lhin  Vi/Mffc  on  the  island  wholly  changed  its  appearance 
within  the  decade  of  1880-'90.  The  old  lodges  were  replaced  by  cot- 
tages, and  the  totem-poles  nearly  all  destroyed,  only  a  half  dozen 
remaining  from  the  forest  that  used  to  encircle  the  beach.  The  tribe 
paid  $750  for  the  granite  monument  over  the  grave  of  their  old  chief, 
on  which  is  chiselled :  "  In  Memory  of  Al;raham  Lincoln,  Chief  of  the 


KK'OM    Mir. HANK    SOl'M)   TO    DIXoN    KNTKANCK. 


rj;{ 


Kilshee  Trilx'.  DumI  at  Tort  Simpson,  July  '21,  iSltO,  ujioil  S'l  yoars'. 
Ill' .-  .id  :  '  Let  mo  die  in  poia-e.     IViu'o  1  K'avc  with  yon.'  " 

Methodist  missionaiii-s  sncccodt'd  Mr.  I)uni'an  at  Kort  Simpson, 
mill  the  Rev.  Mr.  Croshy  and  his  ai<ls  havi'  almost  parallelled  the  Met- 
hikahtla  miraele,  and  the  elinirh,  school,  hospital,  and  museun»  are  the 
points  of  ^'reat  interest.  The  Salvation  Army  has  a  l»and  amonj;  these 
Tsiiiisians.  The  villajre  is  jroverned  hy  a  munitipal  eouiuil  of  elders. 
TIh'V  have  tlieir  tire  company  and  brass  hand,  and  diirin;:  the  smaII-po\ 
('|)id('mie  at  Victoria  in  189'2  all  sulimitted  to  vaccination,  and  closed 
llic  liiid«rc  to  the  villa;;<'  whenever  a  Victoria  steamer  was  in  port. 

All  the  Dixon  Kntrance  rejjion  is  bathed  in  jjcrpetual  ndsts  and 
rains,  and  the  moist  greenhouse  atmosphere  of  summer  forces  a  rank 
vt';i('tation.  The  Hnest  raspl»erries  in  the  world  are  said  t(»  jirow  in  the 
1)1(1  H.  B.  (V).  frardens — inch-Ion^  j;lol»es  of  crim,-on  dew  that  melt  at  a 
toucl- — rose-red  bubbles  that  have  never  felt  dry  air,  a  withering  sun, 
or  a  dust  particle. 

Fort  Simpson  is  confident  of  beconnnp  the  terminus  of  the  next 
".Teat  tianscontintental  railroad  line,  the  farthest  city  of  the  Canadian 
Northwest.  Suburban  tracts  and  wild  timlier  lands  are  held  at  a  pre- 
mium, and  .sites  for  round-house  and  car-shops  liave  been  discussed. 
The  railway  will  follow  tlje  '"  shore  of  llor/-  ('aim/,  which  cuts  south- 
ward to  within  a  mile  of  the  Shioia  River.  Mt.  McXed,  on  its  N.  shore, 
is  a  snowy,  conical  peak  4,;i(M)  ft.  in  hei;;ht.  The  fiord,  l)Ut  800  yards 
l.ioad,  widens  into  a  lake  like  expanse  at  the  end,  and  the  scenery 
aliiiij;  its  walls  is  hijzhly  praised. 

NasH  River,  Observatory  Inlet  and   Portland  C^anal. 

XiiHH  liii'rr  heads  100  miles  iidaud,  and  its  shores  arc  historic 
(.Mouiid  to  all  the  coast  tribes,  the  scenes  of  half  the  myths  and  lej^ends, 
tlie  ciadlc  of  the  native  race.  There  are  several  canneries  and  nulls 
along  its  banks,  and  an  Indian  mission.  The  site  of  the  original  Fort 
Simpson  is  almost  opposite  Erho  Cove,  the  most  pictures(|ue  cannery 
site  on  the  coast.  The  scenery  up  to  that  point  is  wonderfully  fine, 
and  the  canons  and  gorges  J)cyond  offer  every  temptation  to  those  con- 
teiiiitlating  any  canoe  trips.  The  salmon-fisheries  of  the  Nass  are 
regulated  in  the  same  way  as  those  on  the  Skeena. 

The  coming  of  tlie  oulichan  in  March  and  April  is  occasion  for  the 
\l\vnt  fish  festival  of  the  yea»',  and  the  triltes  gather  from  all  f|uarters 
to  leap  the  Nass  harvest.  The  Ilaidas  bring  their  canoes  to  exchange 
for  oulichan-oil;  the  Tinneh  come  down  from  the  mountains  with 
pelts  and  horns;  and  every  Tsimsian  man,  woman,  and  least  child 
help  gatljer  the  living  silver  from  the  water.  The  oulichan  {Thitfr- 
ir/ti/ii/s  pnrificnn\  or  candle-fish,  is  most  nearly  like  the  Atlantic  cape- 
lin,  has  a  delicate  flavour  when  freshly  caught,  and  contains  more  oil 
than   anv  other  known  fish.     It  melts  like  a  lum;)  of  buiter  in  the 


"|;i 


34 


;'';.:!|i:l 


'','}  'l"'l 
;!l|l 


TIIK    (il'KKN    CIIAin.oTTi;    lsf,ANI>S. 


fryinp-parj,  nnd  whrii  dricil,  tlirciided  with  a  Hpnu'c  wirk,  and  stuck 
in  n  bottle,  hums  likf  u  candle.  A  huiu-li  uf  tlieni  touched  to  tlie  (ire 
furnish  u  HuHicieut  torch.  Tlicv  exist  in  ^irealest  nundtcrs,  and  scliools 
of  tliein  coining  in  from  the  sea  lill  the  river  and  inh-ts  from  hank  to 
hank.  Tlu?  natives  rake,  shovd,  dip,  and  seine  tluni  hy  canoe  loads, 
and  either  drv  them  and  striiif^  them  through  the  eyes,  (»r  |)rrs.s  the 
oil  and  store  it  for  winter  use,  as  ai^e  cannot  impair  its  (|ualities.  A 
little  oulichan  has  h(>en  smoked  and  salted  for  export,  and  ranks  as  a 
rival  to  herriniras  a  whetter  to  didl  appetites. 

Portland  C'lilitll  separates  Alaska  from  Ihitish  Columhia  for  the 
fiO  ndles  that  it  cuts  into  the  heart  of  the  Coast  I{an<re.  Captain  (Jray 
was  first  to  discover  these  waters,  aiul  after  iiinninf:  into  Por/fatK/ 
Cano/  and  Ohxcn'atnrii  Inht  was  sure  he  had  found  Ihl  Foiitc's  Jiircr. 
The  Spanish  eonnnandant  at  Nootka  fjave  Captain  (jray's  charts  to 
Vancouver,  and  full  reports  of  his  voyage.  The  Enj^lishnmn  estah- 
lished  an  astronomical  ohservatory  here  under  Puget  and  himself, 
went  with  a  yawl  and  two  small  heats  on  a  reconnoissanee  that  in- 
cluded the  shores  of  Porlland  Ciunil,  ami  the  circumnavigation  of 
Rvi  illiUjUjrih  Miind.  He  covered  VoO  geographical  miles  in  twenty- 
three  days. 

Portland  Canal  i.s  walled  hy  mountains  3,000  and  4,000  ft.  high  at 
the  entrance,  while  those  at  the  end  of  the  fiord  tower  to  tw  ice  that 
height.  At  the  time  of  the  Alaska  purchase  the  surveyors  named  the 
heights  on  one  side  for  distinguished  Americans  of  that  day,  and  Pea- 
hody,  Rousseau,  Ilalleck,  Adams,  Seward,  Johnson  (Reverdy),  and  Lin- 
coln's name  grace  peaks  and  ranges  that,  guarding  the  still  channel 
helow,  comhine  and  compose  themselves  into  as  nohle  landscapes  as 
can  he  seen  in  any  of  the  hroader  fiords.  Much  careful  surveying  and 
exploration  has  heen  done  in  its  reaches  since  the  Alaska  and  British 
Columbia  boundary  line  has  become  a  subject  of  discussion. 

The  Queen  Charlotte  Islands. 

The  Queen  Charlotte  Island  group  lies  off  the  island  belt  of 
the  immediate  mainland  coast,  placed  much  as  the  LofToden  Ishinds  are 
with  respect  to  Norway,  and,  like  them,  bordered  with  extensive  cod 
banks.  The  islands  are  a  half-submerged  mountain  range,  the  direct 
continuation  of  the  Olympics  and  the  Vancouver  Island  chain.  The 
compact  archipelago  measures  180  miles  from  N.  to  S.,  and  60  miles 
across  at  the  greatest  width  of  Graham  Island.  The  Kuro  Siwo  in  its 
recurved  course  falls  full  upon  the  Queen  Charlotte  shores  and  gives 


TIIK    (il'KKN    CIIARF.orrE    ISLANDS. 


:\r> 


tilt*  ir^l.iiuls  a  niiltlor,  moistor,  luid  more  even  eliinate  than  Port  Sinip- 
-.nii  or  the  Skeena  Rivfr  settlements  enjoy.  Tliu  west  eoast  is  a  region 
(if  almost  perpetual  rain,  tlie  peaks  ri.-iiiij^  slieer  l.',0()(t  and  4,0(M)  ft. 
from  the  ocean's  edf^e,  eateliing  and  eondensing  all  the  clouds  and  va- 
pours home  with  the  warm  ocean  current.  The  eastern  shorrs  are  les-s 
rnji^'cd,  and,  sheltered  by  the  mountain  harrier,  enjoy  a  sunuier  and 
(iricr  climate.  Cattle  have  been  successfidly  raised  for  lifty  years,  and 
potatoes  grown  for  a  hundred  years. 

All  the  islands  are  densely  forested,  and  each  a  vast  dead  fall  of 
tiinl)cr.  Log  jams  arch  and  dam  every  stream,  and  the  wihlerness  is 
almost  untouched. 

A'though  Juan  Perez  discovered  these  islands  in  1774,  Dr.  (Jeorgo 
M.  Dawson  has  shown  how  very  possible  it  is  that  this  is  JJc/  F>>n(t\s 
Ai'ihl/Klayo  of  San  Luzarioy  where  the  iiicn  wore  the  skins  of 
lieasts  and  travelled  in  great  canoes  hewn  from  a  single  log;  where 
tlieie  were  river-ways  vexed  by  rapids  no  greater  than  the  tide  rips  and 
currents  that  race  through  the  inlets  to-day;  and  Mynhasset  ai  1  the 
name  of  Del  Fimte's  other  village  are  as  near  toMassett  and  its  rivals 
as  mish  recorders  could  come  in  1<)40.  After  Perez,  La  Perouse 
si  '  the  islands  ;  and  then  Captain  Gray,  of  Boston,  visited  them  and 
n.....-a  them  for  his  ship,  the  Wash'nDjt'm  Islaitf/s.  Next,  in  1787, 
Captain  Dixon,  who  was  exploring  for  a  L«)ndon  fur  company,  touched 
these  shores,  obtained  a  large  ninnber  of  sea  otter  skins  which  were 
then  the  common  dress  of  the  people,  and  named  the  group  the  Queen 
('hnrhttc  Mandx,  in  honour  of  his  ship.  Captain  Dixon  gives  a  full 
description  of  the  shores  and  their  people  in  his  Voyage  Around  the 
Woild,  and  sums  up  the  natives  as  dirty,  thievish,  impudent,  and  mur- 
derous cannibals.  In  1701  Marchand  came  to  the  Northwest  Coast, 
surveved  and  explored  along  the  W.  coast,  and  in  his  Voyages  savs 
that  the  people  were  "  good  husbands,  good  fathers,  .  .  .  hospi- 
table, mild,  intelligent,  and  industrious  people,  endowed  with  great 
good  sense,  to  whom  the  useful  arts  are  not  unknown;  who  join  to 
these  even  the  agreeable  ones,  and  who  may  be  said  to  have  already 
made  considerable  advancement  towards  civilization."  lie  recognized 
Aztec  words  and  terminations  in  their  speech,  and  resemblances  to  Az- 
tec work  in  their  monuments  and  picture  writings.  For  the  next 
twenty  years  the  islands  were  much  resorted  to  by  fur-traders,  l)Ut 
"lien  the  sea  otter  became  extinct  they  were  passed  l)y  for  a  half  cen- 
tury. The  traders  had  given  the  people  potatoes,  and  from  fur  fisher- 
men they  turned  to  truck  farmers,  and  took  canoe-loads  of  potatoes 
to  each  Fort  Simpson  fair.  In  1851  the  H.  B.  Co.'s  agent  at  Fort  Simp- 
.«()u  showed  the  chief  Edinso  a  piece  of  gold-))earing  (piartz,  and  asked 
him  to  look  for  such  stones  on  his  island.  An  old  squaw  showed 
where  a  great  vein  cropped  out  on  the  face  of  a  bluff  on  (Jiaham  Isl- 
and, and  in  the  next  year  the  company  established  a  post  at  Uttewaa 
village,  on  Maxsett  Inlet^  and  their  employ^js  worked  the  ledge  at  Gold 


Wk 


.|':l, 


i\m 


30 


THE    QUKKN    ('IIARLOITE    ISLANDS. 


Up rb(MU' until  it  dipped  (Jov.n  into  the  sea.  Some  miner?,  who  char- 
tered a  Hchocner  and  sailed  for  the  new  gold  region,  were  wrecked  on 
the  coast  and  held  as  ahives  until  ransomed. 

Massett  is  reached  by  the  C.  P.  N.  Co. 'a  steamers  on  their  irregular 
cruises  from  Victoria,  and  hv  small  trading  steamers  from  Fort  Simp- 
son. Its  old  lodges  are  being  abandoned,  its  famous  totem-poles  are 
tottering  to  decay,  and  th.e  spirit  of  progres-i  is  fast  eliminating  every 
element  of  plcturesfiuenoss.  Mdnxett  Inlet  is  the  Clyde  of  the  co'tst  and 
canoc-making  is  always  in  progress. 

The  Ilaidd  m/«or  has  a  curved  bottom,  flaring  sides,  a  hi<;h  round- 
ed stern,  and  a  long,  proj(;cting  prow.  It  is  the  li<*htest,  mos'.  buoyant, 
graceful  and  cranky  craft  on  the  coast.  The  ohl  war  canoes  were  fiO 
and  CO  ft.  long,  elaborately  painted  and  carved,  and  often  (arried  lOO 
warriors.  The  Ilaida  family  or  travelling  canoe,  which  one  sees  aU  up 
and  down  the  coast,  is  a  slender,  graceful,  gondola-like  affair  20  or  ;J0 
ft.  in  Ifcigth  and  4  or  3  ft.  wide.  The  hi  .  ing  or  otter  canoes  are 
cockle-shells  6  or  10  ft.  in  length,  in  which  Ilaida  experts  go  far  to 
sea.  All  these  crafts  are  hewn  from  the  single  log  of  red  cedar,  and 
are  given  tl..ir  flare  and  graceful  curves  by  b*>ing  filled  with  water  and 
hot  stones  until  the  steamed  wood  can, be  f)raced  out  to  the  desired 
width.  Travelling  canoes  range  in  price  from  $75  to  iJilSO  at  Port 
Simpson,  and  huntiiig  canoes  $^30  to  *50;  lin't  the  canoe  market  has  its 
fluctuations  like  any  other,  and  there  i;'e  I'/ten  seasons  of  great  bar- 
gains. The  crnoe  requires  constant  care  while  out  of  the  water.  It 
must  be  protected  from  the  sun's  heat  and  always  kept  wet,  and  the 
draped  canoes  along  a  village  beach  are  t!ie  most  picturesque  adjuncts 
of  native  life. 

There  are  large  oil-works  at  Skidegate,  where  the  livers  of  the 
dog-fish,  which  swarm  in  incredil)le  numbers  in  winter  cMd  spring, 
yield  an  oil  much  valued  by  tanners.  A  soft,  black  slate  is  found  on 
the  banks  of  a  creek  at  the  head  of  Skidcrintc  Inlet,  and  the  Ilaidas 
carve  from  it  miniature  totem-poles,  boxes,  pla(iues,  and  pipes,  often 
inlaying  them  with  haliotis  shell.  The  slate  is  soft  and  easily  cut 
with  a  knife  when  first  quarried,  but  quickly  hardens,  and  will  crack 
if  exposed  to  the  sun  or  lieat  before  it  has  seasoned. 

There  is  a  colony  of  Norwegian  fishermen  on  the  W.  coast  who 
catch  and  cure  halibut  and  the  famous  black  cod  (Anoploponiajiinbria), 
a  valuable  food-fish  which  has  a  different  name  in  each  section  of  the 
Pacific  coast.  As  Spanish  mackerel  it  is  little  valued  at  San  Francisco. 
It  attains  perfection  farther  N.  and  along  the  strait  of  Fiica  ranks 
first  with  epicures  as  "  lieshoir,^''  the  popular  Makah  name  adopted  by 
the  Fish  Commission.  The  Ilaidas  call  it  the  skil,  and  cat<'h  it  with 
wooden  hooks  attached  to  trawl-lines.     The  hook  is  steamed   to  the 


I  ..ii 


•  I 


who  cliar- 
recked  on 


V  irregular 
[•'ort  Simp, 
i-poies  are 
ting  every 
const  and 


f,'h  round- 
.  buoyant, 
3  were  fiO 
irried  100 
ee?  all  up 

20  or  ;]o 
ano(>s  aie 
go  far  to 
edar,  and 
ivater  and 
e  desired 
)  at  Port 
et  has  its 
reat  bar- 
uter.  It 
,  and  the 

adjuncts 

's  of  the 

1  spring, 
'ound  on 

2  Ilaidas 
OS,  often 
lasily  cut 
ill  crack 


S 


1 


)ast  who 
fimbria), 
u  of  the 
^ancisco. 
•a  ranks 
pted  l.'v 
it  with 
I   to  the 


m 


M^ 


p.. 


:i^ 


»^i 


:(!-!■  :^ 


^  //auifj  Tofein-I'oh' 


m 


THE   QUEEN   CHARLOTTE    ISLANDS. 


37 


shape  of  the  letter  U  and  set  with  an  Incurved  barb.  When  not  in  use 
till' ends  of  the  hook  are  bound  fast  with  thongs.  When  baited  the 
ends  are  held  apart  by  a  little  stick,  and,  as  the  skll  nibbles  the  bait, 
it  pushes  out  the  chip  and  the  hook  closes  upon  him  like  a  trap.  The 
t'lii|)  ascending  tallies  one  sX«7  caught ;  but  as  dog  fish  and  shark  wait 
upon  the  trawl,  the  fishermen  often  pulls  up  only  the  hundred  heads. 

THE  HA  IDAS. 

A  church  mission  was  established  at  Massett  in  1876.  Dr.  Hr.r- 
rison  came  to  it  in  18*78,  and  has  studied  the  language,  made  a  vocal  u- 
laiy  of  10,000  Haida  words,  translated  hymns  and  songs,  and  rescued 
much  of  their  folk-lore  and  tradition.  The  Haidas  are  fast  dwindling. 
Mr.  John  Work  rec  a-ded  6,593  inhabitants  to  the  ."^l  villages  visited 
in  1841.  In  1878  there  were  but  three  pTmanent  winter  villages  occu- 
pied— Massett,  Skidegate,  and  Gold  Harbour — and  the  Haidas  num- 
bered less  than  2,000.     Only  700  Haidas  were  enumerated  in  1891. 

The  Haidac  are  the  fine  flower  of  the  native  races  of  the  coast. 
Tiiey  are  taller,  fairer,  with  oval  faces  and  more  regular  features  than 
any  of  the  Columbian  coast  tribes,  and  are  nearei*  to  the  Tlingit  than 
to  any  other  people.  They  are  aliens  to  the  Tlii:^it>-,  and  differ  from  all 
tliL'ir  neighbours  physically  and  mentally,  in  speech  and  customs,  and 
iiiiiny  similarities  are  more  often  the  result  of  Haida  influences.  The 
Tlingits  call  them  De-Kinyo*  "  people  of  the  sea  " ;  and  these  Pacific 
Xinthmen  rivalled  the  earlier  V^ikings  in  their  journeys  to  distant  shores. 
The  Vancouver  and  Puget  Sound  country  were  their  Britain  a  their 
Normandy,  and  coppery  Erics  and  Harolds  swept  the  coasts,  altii*  i-ing 
native  villages,  Hudson  Bay  Company  posts,  and  white  settlements. 
Tliey  once  seized  a  schooner  in  Seattle  harbour  and  murdered  all  on 
board,  and  Haida  was  a  name  of  terror. 

Their  origin  is  the  puzzle  of  ethnologists.  They  have  the  tradition 
of  a  deluge  and  a  sole  surviving  raven,  from  whom  sprang  Qu-a-cdd, 
"  the  people,"  as  they  call  themsel'es,  and  from  which  came  the 
T.-imsian  word  Haida.  One  tradition  makes  Forrester^s  Island^  farther 
out  in  the  ocean,  the  cradle  of  their  race.  Those  who  incline  to 
Marchand's  theory  of  an  Aztec  origin  identify  them  as  the  descendants 
of  those  whom  Cortes  drove  out  of  Mexico,  and  who  vanished  in  boats 
to  the  N.  Their  legend  of  the  thunder-bird  is  the  same  as  the  Aztecs 
and  Zunis.  They  have  images  and  relics  similar  to  silver  images  and 
objects  found  in  Guatemalan  ruins.  They  have  modern  Apache  words 
in  their  speech,  many  of  the  same  dances,  masks,  legends,  and  picture- 
writings  as  the  Zunis.  Their  resemblance  to  the  Japanese  is  quite  as 
marked,  and  as   the  Kuro   Siwo  touches   so  directly  on  the  Queen 

*  Franz  Boas,  Report  of  1889  to  the  British  Association  for  the 
Advancement  of  Science. 


1 


!l'    I't 


,11  ■' 


wr 


m 


!.^.  '     .^i'! 


'I 


,  ! 


ii 


38 


THE    QUEEN    CHARLOTTE    ISLANDS. 


Charlotte  shores,  more  junks  may  have  been  stranded  here  than  else- 
where, during  those  centuries  when  the  Japanese  built  sea-going  junks 
and  travelled  afar.  They  have  Japanese  words  in  their  speech,  they  sit 
at  all  their  work,  they  cut  towards  them  in  using  tools  that  are  the  same 
as  Japanese  use  to  day.  Like  their  aosthetic  cousins  over  the  sea,  they 
are  imitative  and  adaptive  rather  than  originative,  and  they  improve, 
elaborate,  and  refine  upon  all  they  borrow.  In  many  of  their  customs, 
in  their  bark  weaving  and  their  carved  columns,  they  are  akin  to  New 
Zealand  and  South  Sea  people.  Whether  they  copied  the  totem-pole 
from  those  before  the  houses  in  the  mysterious  city  sunk  in  the  sea, 
from  the  New  Zealand  tiki,  or  from  the  Kwakiutls'  simple  heraldic 
pole,  they  have  carried  it  to  its  finest  development.  Forests  of  these 
columns  stand  in  their  old  villages,  their  only  records  and  monuments 
of  any  past,  brief  pictographic  chapters  in  Haida  history,  genealogy,  and 
folk-lore — a  rude  and  monstrous  heraldry,  an  elaborate  symbolism,  a 
system  of  colossal  hieroglyphs.  The  pure  heraldic  columns,  the  kechcns 
or  door-posts,  formed  part  of  the  old  houses  themselves,  and  the  in- 
mates entered  by  an  oval  hole  hewn  at  the  base  of  the  column.  The 
chat,  or  mortuary  column,  was  a  smooth  pole  surmounted  with  the  great 
totem  of  the  dead  man,  and  as  often  with  a  box  or  a  hollowed  space 
containing  the  ashes.  There  are  forty  splendid  poles  at  Mmsetf  or 
Uttewan  village,  as  many  more  in  the  villages  around  the  inlet ;  fifty- 
three  poles  at  Skidegate ;  the  finest  collection  ^f  all  at  Lmkcek  on  Tanoo 
Island,  and  many  at  Cuuinhewa  and  Skedaus. 

In  1878  Dr.  George  M.  Dawson  made  a  geological  survey  of  the 
islands,  examining  the  bituminous  coal-veins  on  (iraham  Island,  and 
the  anthracite  deposit  near  Skidegate.  His  "  Monograph  on  the  Queen 
Charlotte  Islands"  was  embodied  in  the  Annual  Report  of  the  Director 
of  the  Canadian  Geological  Survey  for  1879,  and  is  a  text-book  for  the 
islands  and  their  people.  An  interesting  paper  on  "  The  Haidas,"  by 
Dr.  Dawson,  was  published  in  Harper's  Monthly,  August,  1882.      In 

1883  Hon.  J.  G.  Swan,  of  Port  Townsend,  spent  several  months  canoe- 
ing around  the  W.  coast  and  visiting  the  villages  to  study  Haida 
tattoo,  masks,  carvings,  and  heraldic  paintings  for  the  Smithsonian 
Institution,  which  had  published  his  earlier  studies  in  that  line  as  No. 
267  of  Smithsonian  Contributions  to  Knowledge,  January,  1874.      In 

1884  Mr.  Newton  H.  Chittenden  made  an  exploration  of  the  islands  for 
the  Government  of  British  Columbia,  and  his  pamphlet,  "  Hyda  Land 
and  People,"  contains  a  most  interesting  risuwe  of  his  work. 


i! 


J. 


,IM 


M  i 

'     V 

e  than  olse- 
;oing  junks 
ch,  they  sit 
re  the  same 
l)c'  sea,  they 
3y  improve, 
ir  customs, 
^in  to  New- 
totem  pole 
in  the  sea, 
le   heraldic 
s  of  these 
nonuments 
ealogy,  and 
mbolism,  a 
;he  kechens 
nd  the  in- 
imn.     The 
1  the  great 
wed  space 
Afmseif  or 
ilet;  fifty- 
1"  on  Tanoo 


'ey  of  the 
sland,  and 
he  Queen 
e  Director 
ok  for  the 
lidas,"  by 
[882.  In 
ths  canoe- 
dy  Haida 
lithsonian 
ne  as  No. 
8*74.  In 
dands  for 
yda  Land 


A    ' ; 


IP: 


.  / 


/ 


m 


m 


p 


X 


M 


\ 


ALASKA. 


30 


ALASKA. 


{See  f/enem/  Map  of  Almka.) 

Alaska  itself  is  nine  times  tliesize  of  the  New  Eu;;land  States,  twice 
llic  size  of  Texas,  and  three  times  as  largo  as  California.  It  stretches  for 
more  than  1,000  miles  from  north  to  south,  and  the  Aleutian  Islands 
triiiliuf];  over  into  the  Eastern  hemisphere  make  the  half-way  point  of 
the  Tnited  States  a  little  W.  of  San  Francisco.  The  island  of  Attu  is 
(»vir  2,0(»0  miles  W.  of  Sitka,  and  the  distance  from  Cape  Fox  to  Point 
Harrow  is  as  great  as  from  the  north  of  Maine  to  the  end  of  Florida. 
Alaska  contains  580,107  square  miles,  with  a  coast-line  of  18,211  miles, 
greater  than  the  coast-line  of  all  the  rest  of  the  United  States.  The  1,100 
islands  of  the  Alexander  Arrhipelarfo  have  an  estimated  area  of  ;n,205 
Sduare  miles,  and  the  Aleutian  Maiufs  comprise  6,391  square  miles. 
Tlio  Cordilleran  mountain  system  is  merged  in  one  great  range  at  the 
Aliiskan  line,  and  a  host  of  lofty  peaks  surround  Mt.  St.  Elias,  the  highest 
iiioiintain  on  the  continent,  and  sentinel  of  the  third  highest  range  in 
the  world.  Curving  down  to  southwestward  a  line  of  volcanoes  joins 
those  of  the  Kurile  Islands  and  of  Japan,  and  completes  the  Pacific's 
"  ring  of  fire.''  Low  ranges  and  leagues  of  tundra  stretch  to  the  Arc- 
tic. The  southeastern  Alaska,  which  tourists  know,  is  but  the  handle 
oCa  dipper,  and  residents  "  to  westward  "— i.  e.,  Unalaska  aiid  beyond — 
liaidly  consider  a  visit  to  the  Sitkan  region  as  going  to  Alaska. 

The  United  States  bought  this  vast  country  from  Russia  in  1867 
for  less  than  half  a  cent  an  acre.  Dr.  Dall's  figures*  show  mat 
Alaska  was  a  paying  investment,  returning  a  clear  net  profit  of  8  per 
rent  upon  the  first  cost  for  the  first  five  years.  The  tv/o  tiny  Seal  Isl- 
amls  paid  4  per  cent  on  the  original  $7,200,000,  and  in  their  first 
lease  returned  a  sum  equal  to  the  purchase  money  to  the  Treasury. 
The  gold-mines  have  since  added  an  equal  sum  to  the  wealth  of  the 
world,  and  the  salmon  industry  yielded  .$7,500,000  in  six  years,  1884 
to  1890.  It  is  the  most  sparsely  inhabited  part  of  the  United  States, 
averaging  one  inhabitant  to  each  19  square  miles.  Its  lands  have 
never  been  made  subject  to  entry,  save  mineral  claims ;  it  has  no 
representation  at  Washington  ;  Congress  refuses  to  provide  a  suitable 
or  ctHcient  form  of  government ;  there  is  no  military  post  within  its 

*  See  Harper's  Magazine,  January,  1872. 


mm 


* 

/ 


••r*^ 


r^- 


i)c^\ -I 


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T< 


Circle--' 


^-'X^^::?^^ 


.^VOV^ 


.        W 


:*rf5] 


^^0' 


^WteHlMJ 


*A«o 


'"yjoir"'— ~X    f  \ 

°*^oJinakoff 


Jfi«' 


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^\, 


fe^     P/ 


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.ico^*^ 


5?  =;u  f  ^  *•' 


Redoubt  Vol,^, 
'/'■"jnaPea* 


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;a\    *^*B»<'"'-' 


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oho" 


______  JHi'*  ' 

-  '-^fiHAK  I. 

^MMMOHTl,  ^ 


\    " 


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40  CLIMATE   OF    ALASKA. 

bordcTH,  and  no  telf'^rii;)liic  communication ;  but  by  the  spirit  of  tlic 
people  it  gains  slowly,  and  the  last  frontier  is  moving  northward. 

The  popidatlon  of  Alaska  is  classified  as  follows  in  the  eleventh 
census  (1890): 

WhitcH 4,303 

Mixed  (UiiHsiiui  1111(1  iiative) 1,819 

Indiana 23,274 

Moiip)liaiiK a,287 

All  othcFH 112 

Total 31 ,795 

The  Indians  are  again  divided  as  follows: 

Eskimo 12,784 

Thlinktt 4,739 

Athal)UHkt.n 3,441 

Aleut WJ8 

TsiinpHuaii 951 

Ilyda 391 

Total 23,274 

CLIMATE  OF  SOI  THEASTEKN  ALASKA. 

'•  Berlin,  September  5.— We  have  seen  of  Germany  enough  to  ehow  that  its 
climate  is  neither  so  genial,  nor  itH  soil  ho  fertile,  nor  its  resources  of  forests  and 
mines  so  rich  as  those  of  southern  Alaska."— William  H.  Seward,  Travelt; 
Around  the  World,  Part  VL,  chai).  v.,  page  708. 

In  climate  and  all  physical  features  southeastern  Alaska  is  a  repeti- 
tion of  southern  Norway,  enjoying,  however,  a  far  richer  forestation. 
In  latitude,  configuration,  temperature,  rainfall,  and  ocean  currents  it  is 
identical.  During  the  thirty-six  years  tiiat  the  Russians  kept  meteor- 
olo^^ical  records  at  Sitka  the  mercury  went  below  0°  F.  but  four  times. 
While  St.  John's,  Newfoundland,  is  beleaguered  by  icebergs  in  summci' 
and  its  harbour  is  frozen  solid  in  winter,  Sitka,  10°  N.  of  it,  has  always 
an  open  roadstead,  and  only  the  ends  of  the  longer  fiords  are  ever  closed 
by  ice.  Sitka  Castle,  lying  1*7',  or  3  miles,  N.  of  Balmoral  Castle  in 
Scotland,  has  a  higher  average  winter  temperature  than  the  Highland 
home.  Sitka's  mean  temperature  for  the  year  is  43"3  against  Ber- 
gen's 44'6.  The  snow  rarely  lies  on  the  ground  for  any  time  at  sea- 
level,  mist  and  rains  soon  reducing  it  to  slush,  as  in  Kentucky  or  the 
District  of  Columbia,  the  isothermal  equals  of  this  region.  The  snow- 
line on  the  mountains  is  at  2,500  and  3,000  ft.  Skating  is  a  rare 
pleasure  for  Sitkans,  and  the  Russian  bishop  told  Mr.  Seward  how  de- 
lighted he  was  to  come  and  live  in  "  such  a  nice,  mild  climate." 

The  winter  of  1879-80  was  the  most  severe  known  in  the  century; 
3  ft.  of  snow  remained  on  the  level  for  three  months,  and  the  mercury 
fell  to  —70°,  as  in  Dakota  or  Montana. 


CLIMATE   OF    ALASKA. 


41 


The  mean  temperature  of  the  air  and  of  tlio  surface  sea-water  and 
the  precipitation  for  each  niontli  of  the  yeai'  at  Sitita  are  thuH  given  by 
the  United  Stales  Coast  and  Geodetic  Survey  in  its  Alaslva  "Coast 
Pilots  "of  1HH3  and  1891: 


Tcmpenitiire  of      Ttf.ii|H>rktiire  o( 
tliK  air.  turfai'e  leR-water. 


rrui'l]iit«tlon. 


January., 

Kcbriiarv, 
Miiirli..'.. 

April 

May 


iliuic 

July 

AllKil'4  — 
Sfptt'inluT 
OctolMT... 
Niivt'inlji'i'. 
lU'Cfiiiber., 


81-4 

408 
470 


sn-o 

4^0 
40  5 
4H0 
4S»0 

no-0 


Year . 


51-) 

ni-r* 

14  S) 

IHS) 

;3H1 

44  4 

m-'d 

41-7 

48-3 


450 


7-85 

(J4r) 
:>•:.'« 
r)i7 

4  18 

.•)()Si 
4  1« 

cm 

11 -8:1 
8«5 
8-39 


81 -CO 


The  old  residents  insist  that  the  climate  is  changing ;  that  the  sum- 
mers are  warmer  and  drier  than  formerly ;  and  that,  allowing  for  the 
(litrerent  hours  at  which  Baron  Wrangell  and  his  successors  took  the 
tein[)erature,  the  records  show  three  degiee.*  increase  of  average  tem- 
perature since  1835.  The  rapid  retreat  of  all  the  tide-water  glaciers 
(liiiin;;  even  20  years  is  offered  as  anotlier  proof,  and  there  was  (mly 
cue  of  the  old-style,  perpetually  rainy  summers  in  the  decade  1880-90. 

The  greater  Gulf  Stream  of  the  Pacific  and  the  loftier  mountain 
ranj^es  give  southeastern  Alaska  a  greater  rainfall  than  southern  Nor- 
way, liergen's  annual  72*25  inches  and  the  Nordfiord's  extreme  78 
inches  are  exceeded  by  Sitka's  annual  81  inches,  and  Fort  Tongass's 
1 18:^0  inches — all  exceeded,  however,  by  Cape  Flattery's  140-9  inches  in 
1885-86.  There  have  been  wet  seasons  in  Alaska  of  285  and  340 
nviiiy  days.  This  heavy  precipitation  gives  the  moui'tains  their  shin- 
i  ig  crowns,  feeds  the  glaciers,  forces  the  luxuriant  vegetation,  brings 
c  v-'vy  leaf  and  twig  to  its  fullest  perfection,  and  keeps  the  foliage  so 
fre-^'.i  and  dewy  that  at  times  the  green  sparkles  and  almost  dazzles  one 
w  ith  its  intensity.  With  all  the  down-pour  or  drizzle  of  days,  there  is 
nothing  like  that  soul-piercing,  marrow-penetrating  dampness,  that 
awful  chill  of  the  ocean  that  creeps  into  Atlantic  cities  far  to  south- 
ward. Guns  do  not  rust ;  cigars  and  tobacco  do  not  mould  or  mildew. 
Clotlies  dry  under  a  shed  on  the  rainiest  days,  even  under  awnings  on 
shiphoard ;  and  the  tourist  finds  that  his  gloves  and  shoes  show  no  re- 
luctance in  being  pulled  on  on  wet  mornings. 

Tliere  is  a  blessed  immunity  from  thunder-stornjs,  and  the  rare  dis- 
plays of  thunder  and  lightning  in  the  midst  of  winter  hail  and  snow- 
storms frighten  the  Indians  greatly.  There  are  fine  auroral  displays  in 
the  long  winter  nights  ;  but  no  one  remembers  seeing  any  such  electric 
exhibitions  as  enlivened  the  early  veais  of  the  centurv,  when  Langs- 
4 


42 


CLIMATK   OF    ALASKA. 


t^ 


T-n*' 


dorff  mcntionfl  the  utr  bcin^  so  chiii'Kod  with  electricity  that  bhiish 
green  balls  of  fire — St.  Elmo  lights — danced  on  the  bayonet  tips  of 
the  muskets  and  the  metal  heads  of  the  HugstafTs  on  tho  palisade.  In 
this  century  one  great  eartlxiuuke  at  Sitka  split  off  the  front  of  Versto- 
voi,  another  razed  tho  citadel,  and  slight  tremblings  have  been  felt 
at  time.s,  notably  during  great  storms.  Two  great  cyclonic  storms 
have  occurred  since  the  transfer  of  the  country.  One  occurred  ju.st 
after  that  ceremony  when  Sitka  harbour  was  crowded  with  ships.  All 
dragge<l  anchors,  two  were  wrecked,  and  the  man-of-war  bearing  the 
U.  S.  Commissioners  home  nearly  foundered  off  Cape  Ommaney. 

The  next  great  hurricane  came  October  26,  1880,  13  years  to  the 
day  after  the  transfer  cychme.  It  was  accompanied  by  lieavy  earth- 
quake shocks.  Captain  IJcardslce  reported  14  revolving  gales  which 
passed  up  the  coast  during  his  coramanu  at  Sitka,  estray  typhoons  that 
belonged  on  the  other  side  of  the  ocean. 

With  Norway,  Scotland,  and  Ireland  to  prove  the  contrary,  it  is 
often  asserted  that  grain  and  vegetables  cannot  be  grown  in  Alaska. 
Barawof  cleared  15  kitchen  gardens  in  1806  and  ripened  barley  and 
potatoes,  and  common  vegetables,  as  has  been  done  every  year  since. 
Fine  grasses  spring  naturally  on  any  clearing;  wild  timothy  and 
coarser  grasses  grow  3  and  4  ft.  high,  and  clover  thrives  unheeded. 
Vancouver  found  the  natives  cultivating  potatoes  and  a  kind  of  tobacco, 
and  each  family  had  its  little  plantations  in  sheltered  nooks  where  they 
sowed  their  tubers  like  grain,  and  gathered  them  the  next  winter  or 
spring.  There  were  gardens  on  either  side  of  the  stockades  at  Sitka 
which  provided  fresh  vegetables,  and  hot-house  frames  secured  the 
Russians  many  delicacies. 

In  United  States  days  residents  have  successfully  raised  radishes,  let- 
tuce, carrots,  onions,  cauliflower,  cabbage,  peas,  turnips,  beets,  parsnips, 
and  celery  ;  and  single  potatoes  have  weighed  1  pound  6  ounces.  Vege- 
tables are  raised  every  year  at  Yukon  missions  and  trading-posts.  Hay 
has  been  cured  in  southeastern  Alaska  every  summer  since  1806,  and 
by  adopting  Norwegian  methods  larger  crop*'  could  be  better  cured. 

In  Norway  wheat  is  cultivated  as  far  N.  as  64° ;  rye  up  to  the  line  of 
69° ;  barley  and"  oats  as  far  N.  as  70° ;  apples,  plums,  and  cherries  to 
64°  and  65°  ;  and  wild  raspberries,  strawberries,  currants,  and  goose- 
berries up  to  the  North  Cape,  71°  10'.  The  length  of  the  summer 
days  compensates  for  the  lower  temperature,  and  there  is  usually  a 
fortnight  or  more  of  really  hot  weather  in  the  Sitkan  region  each  sum- 
mer— a  fortnight  of  hot  days  18  hours  long,  in  1891,  with  the  mer- 
cury passing  80°  every  noon,  and  reaching  93°  on  board  the  U.  S.  S. 
Pinfa.  Norwegians  long  ago  discovered  that  seeds  and  plants  from 
southern  Europe  had  to  be  acclimated  for  two  or  three  years  before 
yielding  a  good  crop.  Even  maple-trees  undergo  a  change  when  trans- 
planted from  southern  to  northern  Norway,  the  nighvloss  days  forcing 
the  leaves  to  an  enormous  size,  while  the  tree  itself  is  lov/  and  stunted, 
and  all  commcn  wild  flowers  attain  unusual  size  and  colour  in  the 
northlaiids. 


ALA8KA — NATIVE    RACKS. 


43 


THE  NATIVE  RACE  OF  SOUTHEASTERN  ALASKA. -THE  TLIN(}ITS. 

The  11  tribes  of  Tlingits  inhabiting  the  couHt  and  islands  of  Honth- 
eastern  Alaska  were  roughly  estimated  by  tho  Russians  as  nunibciing 
from  26,000  to  30,000.  General  Ilalleclt's  ostiinate  of  18r.9  gave 
12,000  or  16,000.  The  census  of  1880  cnumeratfd  «,i;>7  Tlinu;its; 
tliat  of  1890  but  4,457.  Epidemics  of  smallpox,  black  meash's,  and 
;,'rippe,  with  the  vices  of  civilization,  have  thus  depletod  their  ranks. 

The  w«)rd  Tlin<jit  is  their  name  for  "  man,"  "  people."  The  Kus- 
sians  called  them  Koloschiaru,  from  the  Aleut  name  Kulushka  (little 
tioujili),  for  tlio  labictte  worn  in  the  lower  lip.  There  are  as  many 
.<(  parate  tracilons  of  a  supernatural  origin,  a  deluge,  and  a  sole  surviv- 
ing; couple  as  there  are  tribes  of  Tlingits.  There  is  no  legend  to  point 
(iistinetly  to  trans-Pacific  origin,  but  many  tell  of  a  niigiatiou  front  the 
S.  K.,  the  Nass  River  country. 

Their  propitiation  of  evil  spirits,  their  shamanism,  their  belief  in 
the  transmigration  of  souls,  their  worshinfil  regard  for  the  spirits  and 
ashes  of  their  ancestors,  are  essentially  Asiatic.  Some  of  their  myths, 
tlieir  carvings  and  constructions,  and  many  words,  are  Aino ;  their 
inetliods,  tuols,  and  postures  at  work  are  Japanese.  Their  totem-poles 
are  kin  to  tl;.  New  Zealand  tiki  and  the  Easter  Island  imaj;cs  ;  and 
there  are  i.<'»'\  resemblances  to  Maori  and  South  Sea  people.  Their 
siiu-worship,  tueir  Nature-worship,  with  offerings  to  mountains,  winds, 
aii;l  glaciers,  are  nearly  Aztec,  and  the  same  Thuiuler  Hird  reigns  from 
the  Isthmus  of  Panama  to  the  end  of  Tlingit  land.  The}  have  the  same 
(lances  and  masks  as  the  Zunis,  the  same  totems  as  the  Hurons,  Dela- 
vvares,  and  Omahas.  They  arc  nearest  to  the  Ilaidas,  but  have  much 
in  common  with  Tsimsians  and  Kwakiutis,  and  are  greatly  superior  to 
tiie  Salish.  They  are  totally  different  stock  from  the  inti-rior  or  Tinni  h 
tribes,  of  whom  all  Tlingits  speak  contemptuously  as  Stik  Indians. 

Totanism  is  the  base  of  their  social  organization,  the  totem  or  tribal 
mark  distinguishing  the  dwelling  and  every  belonging  of  these  people. 
Only  animal  totems  occur,  and  they  live  under  the  protection  of  and 
are  inspired  by  these  guardian  animals,  who  are  often  btj|ieved  to  have 
been  the  ancestors  of  the  race.  The  crow  or  raven,  representing 
woman,  the  creative  principle,  and  the  wolf,  the  aggn'ssive  or  fightiiig 
creature,  are  the  great  totems  of  the  coast,  and  each  are  subiiividcd 
into  clans.  Men  do  not  marry  women  of  their  own  totem.  The  to- 
teniic  is  stronger  than  family  or  tribal  bonds.  Men  often  elect  indi- 
vidual totems,  usually  the  animal  seen  or  dreamed  of  during  their  lonely 
fasts  in  the  woods  preceding  their  majority  and  their  initiation  into  the 
rites  and  great  ceremonies  of  the  clan.  These  elective  totems,  added 
to  the  clan  and  family  totemg,  account  for  the  storied  images  on  the 
totem-poles.  The  totem-pole  has  no  religious?  significance,  and  is  not 
an  object  of  idolatrous  worship.  Its  heraldic  designs  and  cpiarterings 
are  displayed  in  the  same  way  and  for  the  same  reason  that  a  Euro- 
pean parades  his  crest  and  scutcheon.    The  Tlingits  understand  the 


«$t] 


•I.,     I 

':.  1 


^'     '' 


i:    . 

: 

'^h 

1 

V,  ^    .: 

;■* 

\ 

'i 

1 

1 


f^ 


44 


ALASKA — NATIVE    1?ACKS. 


spread  eagle  to  be  the  "  Boston  mini's  "  totem,  and  the  lion  and  the 
unicorn  the  two  totems  of  the  "  King  (rtorge  men."  Their  bears, 
whales,  frogs,  liiid  wolves  are  no  more  difficult  to  recot  .,!'<e  in  their 
rigidly  conventionalized  carvings  than  thegriffins, dragons, and y^^f/r-^/c- 
lis-  of  Euroi»ean  heraldry. 

Frazer's  small  volume,  Totemism,  Edinburgh,  1877,  is  a  text-'  ool., 
and  those  interested  in  pursuing  the  subject  in  its  wide  range  will  find 
it  discusse<l  in  the  following  works :  E.  Cl;)dd,  Myths  and  Dreams  ; 
Encyclopit'dia  Britannica  (Frazer),  Totemism  and  Sacrifice ;  Sir  John 
Lul)])ock,  Origin  ol  Civilization  r,  Andrew  Lang,  Custom  and  Myth  ; 
A.  P.  Niblack,  The  Coast  Indians  of  Southern  Alaska  and  Xorthein 
British  Culuml>ia;  Sayce's  Introduction  to  the  Study  of  Early  Lan- 
guages; W.  Hi'bertson  Smith,  Kinship  and  Marriage  in  Early  Arabia; 
E.  B.  Tylor,  Anthropology,  Early  History  of  Mankind. 

Tlingit  speech  has  been  studied  and  vocabularies  made  by  Dixon, 
Murchand,  Lisiansky,  Wrangell,  Veniaminotf,  Fnruli8!m,  Emmons,  and 
Boas,  wiili  many  totes  of  their  idioms  and  constructions,  translal'  ns 
and  notations  of  their  songs.  The  common  speech  is  much  corrupted 
by  liussiaii,  Englisli,  and  Chinook.  Lieutenant  Emmons  has  found 
evidences  ot  an  older  language,  a  classic  to  all  Tlingits.  Mr.  Charles 
Walcoit  noted  "  the  Japanese  idioms,  constructions,  honorific,  separa- 
tive, and  agglutinative  particles."  Like  the  Japanese,  the  Tlingits  can- 
not pronounce  / ;  like  the  Chinese  and  the  ancient  Mexicans,  they  can- 
not pronounce  r.  Dr.  Boas  finds  the  labials  all  absent  from  Tlingit, 
which  lius  no  grammatical  sex  and  no  forms  for  plural.  Captain  Cook 
fivst  noticed  the  many  terminations  like  the  Aztec  ///,  more  narked  in 
Haida  ;  •uu\  Dr.  Dawson  employs  in  Ilaida  words  the  ureek  x  to  ex- 
press a  stronger  palatal  than  {English  affords.  Tlingit  is  the  harshest  of 
all  coast  tongues.  Horatio  Hale  has  noted  th.at  all  these  harsher  lan- 
gUMges  ceas.  a'^  the  Columbia,  where  tlie  coast  climate  changes  so  mark- 
edly. The  Nortl)W"«t  Coast  is  the  rainiest  part  of  the  world  with  '^ 
climate  of  peipi  lual  April  or  Octo'>er,  and  these  people  spend  their 
lives  in  canoes.  "  Tlieir  pronunoiatum  is  that  of  a  people  whose  vocal 
organs  have  for  generations  ))een  affected  by  continuous  coughs  and 
catarrhs,  thickening  the  mucous  membrane  and  ob'tructing  the  aii 
Dassijgcs."*  Jt  has  been  compared  to  the  Del  Fuegian  sj^eech  of  whici' 
Darwin  has  said  :  "  The  language  of  these  people,  according  to  our  no- 
tions, scarcely  deserves  to  be  called  articulate.  Captain  Cook  has 
complied  it  to  a  mi'.i  clearing  his  throat,  but  certainly  no  Europtn 
ever  eh  ared  his  tlroat  with  so  many  hoarse,  guttural,  and  clicking 
sounds."  Any  one  attempting  to  record  Tlingit  words  by  phonetic 
.'Mgns  is  baulked  by  sounds  impossible  of  imitation,  aspirates  and  gut- 
tiualspast  conveyance  )»y  our  signs.  Charles  Wiirren  Stoddard  has 
called  Tlingit  "a  confusion  of  gutturals  with  a  plenitude  of  saliva — 
a  moist  langt'age  with  a  gurgle  that  approaches  a  gargle,  .  .  .  and  the 
unaccustomed  ear  scarcely  recovers  from  the  shock  of  it." 

*  Proceedings  of  the  British  Association  for  the  Advancement  of  Sci- 
ence, 1890. 


ird  has 

taliva — 

iiid  the 


ofSci- 


Tlinyit  H'ovinn. 


^A 


''%' 


■Mi 


rt 


ALASKA NATIVE   RACES. 


45 


III  cominon  with  all  Northwest  Coast  people,  the  Tlingits  have  in- 
herited a  magnificent  development  of  the  alioulders,  chest,  and  arms 
Irom  generations  of  canoe-paddling  ancestors,  but  the  rest  of  the  body 
is  stunted  and  deformed,  and  all  are  bow-legged  and  pigeon-toed, 
shuffling,  shambling,  and  moving  as  awkwardly  as  aquatic  birds  on 
land.  Their  mental  superiority  to  the  Tinneh  of  the  interior  and  the 
pliiins  tribes  of  the  United  States  may  be  the  result  of  their  exclusive 
ti-;h  (het.  It  was  never  Tlingit  fashion  to  flatten  or  elongate  the  skull, 
their  mutilations  comprising  tattooing,  and  the  wearing  of  labrettes, 
nose  and  ear  ornaments.  The  Labrotte  was  formerly  the  woman's  badge 
of  age,  rank,  and  condition,  but  is  only  seen  on  older  women  now. 
Young  girls  are  still,  as  formerly,  "brought  out  "  and  introduced  social- 
ly as  any  debutante  among  Caucasians.  The  (Ubutiintc\<i  lower  lip  was 
formerly  pierced  and  an  inch-long  copper  or  silver  pin  worn,  until  re- 
placed by  a  small  bone  or  wooden  stud  after  marriage,  which  gradually 
increased  until  dowagers  wore  a  huge  block  or  plug — "  a  wooden  bowl 
without  handles,"  La  Perouse  says — that  measured  two  or  three  inches 
across.  Captain  Cook's  men  called  him  to  see  the  Aleut  who,  having 
removed  the  labrette,  was  supposed  to  have  two  mouths.  Captain 
O'Dowd  told  Langsdorff  of  a  chief's  wife  in  Chatham  Strait  who  could 
conceal  her  whole  face  by  a  dexterous  turn  of  the  lip  holding  an  enor- 
mous labrette. 

TLINGIT  CUSTOMS. 

In  earlier  days  painting  and  tattooing  were  universal.  They  paint 
now  only  for  great  dances  and  potlatches,  but  continue  to  black  their 
faces  as  a  summer  protection  from  tan  and  insects.  This  coating  of 
soot  and  seal  oil  has  been  mistakenly  called  a  badge  of  mourning. 
Governor  Swineford  forbade  face-blackening,  and  punishe<l  offenders, 
while  Rangeley  and  Adirondack  fishermen  were  ])ermitted  to  use  tar  oil 
and  fly  ointment ;  and  climbers  of  Mt.  Rainier  blacked  their  faces 
upon  reaching  the  snow- line. 

There  are  often  fine  exceptions  to  the  regulation  flat,  hoa^y-jawed, 
and  high-cheeked  faces;  and  women  often  show  strong,  eagle-visages 
of  more  regular  mould.  These  family  arbiters  and  tyrants  are  hardest 
of  bargainers,  and  contemptuous  of  man's  interference.  Marriages 
are  arranged  by  the  elders  for  the  best  advantage'  of  tlio  clan  and 
family,  and  while  woman  is  supreme,  all  wealth  and  power  descending 
through  her,  polygamy  is  practised.  Upon  a  man's  death  his  widows 
pass  to  the  next  heir  in  his  mother's  family.  Younger  brothers  and 
nephews,  inheriting  such  widows,  may  purchase  freedom  l)y  blankets. 

The  Tlingits  have  their  political  societies,  with  honours  as  often  be- 
stowed upon  humble  worth.  All  of  the  totem  contribute  to  the  j)otlutches 
of  their  chief,  working  and  saving  for  years  to  make  an  extravagant  dis- 
play and  division  of  wealth.  The  potlatch  is  usually  given  at  the  full 
of  the  moon,  and  the  host's  clan  and  to^em  do  not  accept  any  gift. 
The  seating  and  serving  of  the  guests  are  as  precisely  ordered  as  at  a 
court  function,  and  bloodshed  follows  any  oversights.  Hospitalities  are 
returned  in  kind,  and  the  social  ledgers  of  the  totems  regularly  balanced. 


ir  ^ 


46 


ALASKA — NATIVE   RACES. 


\ 


In  early  times  they  were  incessant  dancers;  songs,  chants,  and 
dramatic  representations  accompanied  all  welcomes,  partings,  feasts, 
tights,  funerals,  and  visits.  Trading  was  not  a  mere  mercenary  trans- 
action when  a  line  of  canoes  advanced,  circled,  and  manoeuvred 
around  a  ship ;  painted  men  in  ceremonial  dress,  powdered  with  the 
eagle-down  of  peace,  chanted  in  chorus,  and  the  chiefs  delivered  reci- 
tatives and  obligatos.  Boston  traders  gave  them  rum,  and  a  deserter 
of  a  whaler's  crew  and  a  discharged  United  States  soldier  have  credit 
for  teaching  them  to  distil  hoochinoo,  or  native  drink.  They  have 
many  games  of  chance,  the  favourite  being  a  crude /aw  tan  played  with 
52  cylindrical  sticks  with  different  marks.  The  sticks  arc  either 
drawn  and  matched,  or  players  guess  the  position,  number,  or  odd  and 
even  of  the  sticks  the  dealer  hides  under  a  mass  of  cedar  shreds. 
Pools  and  individual  stakes  are  made  and  sticks  cashed  by  the  winners 
by  a  regular  tariff.  The  dealer  chants,  and  the  players  join  in ;  and 
when  all  a  Tlingit's  wives,  canoes,  slaves,  blankets,  and  tows  are  hang- 
ing in  the  balance,  the  whole  lodge  swells  the  frantic  chorus.  Playing- 
cards  are  much  used,  and  in  summer  one  may  find  poker  parties  play- 
ing all  day  on  the  beach  and  utilizing  the  midnight  light.  Their  first 
tokens  of  wealth  were  the  ^ows^-curved  copper  shields  ornamented 
with  totemic  cuttings,  said  to  have  come  originally  from  the  Chilkats, 
and  said  to  be  imitations  of  the  coppjr  plates  nailed  to  conspicuous 
trees  by  the  first  Russian  discoverers.  A  toio  was  worth  $800  to  $1,000 
by  the  blanket  scale — a  "  two  and  a  half  point ''  H.  B.  Co.  blanket 
counting  for  $1.50 — and  often  sold  for  ten  slaves.  Hiaqua  shells  were 
retired  from  circulation  when  a  Yankee  had  imitations  made  of  porce- 
lain ;  and  the  Russians  for  a  long  time  gave  a  leather  money.  Coin 
only  came  to  them  after  the  transfer.  Silver  is  highly  '  alucd,  and 
stored  in  bulk  or  beaten  into  ornaments. 

The  whites  hive  had  to  yield  to  Tlingit  idveas  of  justice  and  to- 
temic laws :  an  eye  for  an  eye,  a  tooth  for  a  tooth,  or  a  material  equiv- 
alent, are  strictly  demanded.  A  blanket  indemnity  will  solace  any 
wound  to  pride,  honour,  or  affection,  and  their  logic  follows  every  loss 
and  injury  to  first  causes.  The  Tlingit  who  shot  at  a  decoy  duck 
made  the  decoy'  owner  pay  for  the  cartridges;  the  c.ter  hunter, 
rescued  from  a  brokeri  and  sinking  canoe,  demanded  the  value  of  the 
canoe  when  set  ashore ;  the  n  lativcs  even  of  a  burglar  made  the 
owner  of  the  stolen  rifle  pay  for  the  burglar  killed  by  its  accidental 
discharge.  White  doctors  pay  for  any  dead  patients  whom  tlioy  have 
treated ;  and  when  Haronovich  accidentally  shot  his  own  child,  he  him- 
self had  to  pay  the  Whale  totem,  or  his  wife's  clan,  so  many  hundred 
blankets,  or  be  killed  himself  to  balance  the  account. 

In  illness  the  Tlingit  sent  for  his  shaman  or  medicine-man,  who, 
continuing  his  fasts  alone  in  the  forest  throughout  life,  continued  to 
receive  inspiration  from  his  guardian  and  familiar  animal  spirits.  In 
frantic  parades  and  dances  about  a  village,  a  shaman  bit  live  dogs  and 
ate  the  heads  and  tongues  of  frogs,  which  contained  a  jotent  medicine. 
He  performed  his  miraculous  cures  unrler  the  spell  if  his  special 
totemic  spirit,  and  an  emetic  of  dried  frogs  and  sea-wattr  gave  him  a 


ALASKA — NATIVE    KACE8. 


47 


vision  to  perceive  the  aoul  leaving  a  man's  body,  ability  to  oateh 
and  replace  it,  and  cast  out  the  evil  spirits  which  had  possessed  the 
patient.  When  the  chant,  dance,  and  hocus-pocus  failed  to  cure,  the 
HJiaman  denounced  some  one  for  charming  or  bewitching  his  patient, 
and  demanded  his  torture  or  death.  Usually  the  infirm  or  the  aged 
poor,  slaves  or  personal  enemies,  were  denounced  and  subjected  to 
fiendish  tortures.  Captain  E.  C.  Merriuian,  U.  S.  N.,  broke  the  power 
of  shamanism  in  the  archipelago  by  repeated  rescues  of  those  charged 
with  witchcraft,  by  fine  and  punishment  of  tribe  and  shamans,  and 
linally  by  taking  the  shamans  on  board  his  ship,  shaving  off  and 
burning  their  long  sacred  hair  and  sending  them  out  bald-headed,  to 
he  met  with  roars  of  Tlingit  laughter.  There  have  been  few  cases  of 
witchcraft  since. 

While  all  other  Tlingits  were  cremated,  so  as  to  make  sure  of  a 
warm  and  comfortable  future,  they  believed  that  the  shaman's  body 
would  not  burn,  and  such  were  buried  in  sitting  posture  in  little  pavil- 
ions in  remote  and  picturesque  spots  surroimded  by  the  blankets, 
tows,  masks,  wands,  rattles,  and  paraphernalia  of  his  trade.  Shamans' 
irvavos  have  yielded  richest  treasures  for  ethnological  nmseums.  Other 
Tlingits  were  cremated  with  elaborate  ceremonies,  the  wailing,  pyre- 
hiiikling,  etc.,  always  conducted  by  people  of  another  totem,  and  the 
ashes  and  bones  stowed  away  in  a  carved  grave-box  or  canoe,  or 
niched  in  mortuary  columns.  Personal  possessions  and  food  for  use 
in  the  spirit-land  were  buried  with  the  dead,  and  often  a  slave  was 
despatched  so  as  to  attend  his  master  beyond.  The  missionaries  have 
etfectually  broken  up  the  practice  of  cremation,  on  the  grounds  of 
heathenism,  and  inhumation  is  now  practised.  The  Tlingits  believe 
that  after  death  the  spirits  take  possession  of  the  bodies  of  animals, 
re. isit  their  homes,  and  teach  the  mysteries  of  life  to  fasting  youths 
in  the  forest.  Earthquakes  are  caused  by  ghosts,  and  the  aurora 
borealis  is  the  ghost-dance  of  dead  warriors  w^ho  live  in  the  plains 
of  the  sky,  from  which  the  earth  was  cat  loose  and  fell  to  the  sea. 

They  have  their  lucky  and  unlucky  numbers,  their  signs  and  marks 
for  the  propitiation  of  evil.  They  saw  outlines  in  the  constellations,  and 
had  their  names  and  legends  for  these  otter-skins  and  bailers  in  the  sky. 

Their  folk-lore,  myths,  am'  traditions  reveal  a  poetry  and  richness  of 
imagination  not  to  be  expected  from  these  stolid  people. 

The  Crou\  in  whom  lives  Yehl,  the  great  spirit  and  creator,  first 
dwelt  on  Nass  River,  where,  having  created  himself  and  the  world,  he 
turned  two  blades  of  grass  into  the  parent  race.  The  Tlingits  increased 
and  became  a  great  people,  and  spread  far  and  wide.  Suddenly  da-'K- 
ness  came,  and  all  life  stopped.  A  Tlingit  stole  the  sun  an'!  hid 
it  in  a  box  on  Japonski  Island,  but  the  Crow  found  it,  an^',  flying 
off  with  it,  set  it  so  high  in  the  sky  that  none  could  steal  it  again. 
Again  the  Tlingits  increased  and  spread  abroad,  but  aftc  many  gen- 
erations there  came  a  great  flood,  and  all  perished  save  cwo  Tlingits 
who  were  long  tossed  about  on  a  raft,  until  the  crow  appeared  and  car- 
ried this  pair  to  Mt.  Edgecumbe,  where  they  lived  until  ihe  waters  fell. 
It  is  related  in  some  versions  that  another  raft  of  jxople  was  borne 


(1 


48 


THE   BOUNDARY    LlNT). 


:■ 

P! 

i 

5 

*"'       i, 

..» 

>^-;r 

away  lo  the  southwest  ward  by  the  flood  iiHd  that  tliey  are  the  parents  of 
the  other  races  of  the  eaith.  Then,  again,  it  is  said  that  the  two  surviv- 
ors of  the  flood  were  su[)ematural  creatures,  one  of  whom  descended 
through  the  crater  of  Mt.  Edgccunibe  and  J. ere  stays  to  hold  the  earth 
up  out  of  the  water,  wliilo  the  oti  or  H  ea  as  the  grea.  Thunder  Bird 
Hahtla,  who  dwells  in  the  crater,  the  flapping  of  whose  wings  is  the  thun- 
der and  whose  glances  are  lightning.  Ilalitla  is  personated  by  the  osprey, 
who  rides  the  storms  and  seizes  the  salmon  from  the  waters,  and  his 
inverted  face  glares  fro.n  ceremonial  blankets  and  carved  boxes.  The 
visit  to  heaven  and  the  stealing  or  killing  of  the  sun  is  common  to  all 
the  Northwestern  people,  and  Dr.  Fraz  lioas  gives  several  variations  of 
it  current  among  the  Kwakiiitl  and  other  British  Columbian  tribes. 

THE  INTEltXATIOXAL  BOUNDARY  LINE. 

'' Fifti/.four  Forty:'' 

Bodegay  Qu.adra  named  the  g'cat  strait  Perez  Inlet  in  1775,  but 
Vancouver  preferred  that  it  should  be  Captain  Dixon's  Entrance,  as 
named  for  and  by  that  commander  of  the  Queen  Charlotte  in  1787.  It 
has  also  been  known  as  Graiiitza  Sound  and  Kyijane  Strait.  It  very 
evenly  divides  the  Northwest  Coast,  and  with  its  prolongations  runs  a 
natural  water  boundary  far  inland. 

At  this  entrance,  600  miles  N.  of  Boundary  Bay  and  the  forty-ninth 
parallel,  one  re-enters  the  United  States,  the  once  northern  boundary  of 
the  Oregon  Territory  becoming  the  southern  boundary  of  Alaska.  Suc- 
ceeding the  Nootka  Convention  of  171)0,  the  Northwest  Coast  became 
virgin  soil  open  to  free  settlement  and  trade  by  any  people,  and  three 
nations  claimed  it.  The  Russians  asserted  ownership  down  to  the 
Columbia,  and  then  Avithdrew  to  51  °,  or  to  the  north  end  of  Vancouver 
Island.  The  British  claimed  the  coast  from  the  Columbia  River  to 
56°,  and  the  United  States  claimed  all  W.  of  the  Rocky  Mts.  between 
42°  and  54°  40'.  In  1818  the  United  States  and  Great'Britain  agreed 
to  a  joint  occupancy  of  the  region,  and  in  1819  the  United  States  bought 
Florida  from  Spain,  and  with  it  acquired  all  of  Spanish  rights  and 
claims  on  the  coast  N.  of  42".  By  the  number  of  its  trading  ^osts  and 
vessels  regularly  visiting  the  coast,  the  United  States  was  virtually  in 
possession  of  the  region,  but  British  fur-traders  were  pushing  westward 
from  the  interior. 

The  Emperor  of  Russia,  by  his  ukase  of  1821,  forbidding  all  foreign 
vessels  from  approaching  within  10<>  Italian  miles  of  his  possessions  in 
the  North  PaciHc,  purposely  brought  about  the  conventions  of  1824-'25 
to  adjust  the  rival  claims  to  North  American  territoi-y  and  to  regulate 
trade.  By  the  treaty  of  1824  with  the  United  States,  and  that  of  1825 
with  Great  Britain,  Russia  agreed  to  54°  40'  as  the  southern  limit  of 
her  possessions,  and  allowed  the  vessels  of  the  othc  two  nations  to 
freely  trade  for  a  period  of  ten  years.  The  useless  and  uninhabited 
interior  was  parcelled  out  in  oven  thirds — Russia  taking  the   north- 


THE   BOUNDARY   LINE. 


49 


bought 
ts  and 
ts  and 
lally  in 
itward 

'oveign 

ions  in 

24-'25 

jgulate 

1825 

jmit  of 

Ions  to 

abited 

north- 


western or  Yukon  region,  England  the  Mackenzie  region  and  all  be- 
tween Hudson  Bay  and  the  Rocky  Mts.,  while  the  Oregon  territory, 
all  \V.  of  the  Rockies  and  N.  of  42°,  was  claimed  for  the  United  States. 
In  1828  the  joint  occupation  of  the  Northwest  Coast  by  the  United 
Stutes  and  Great  Britain  was  indefinitely  extended.  In  1837-'38  socie- 
ties for  emigrating  to  Oregon  were  formed  in  the  United  States,  and  in 
1813  that  great  waggon  train  with  a  thousand  people  crossed  from  the 
Missouri  River  to  the  Columbia,  and  the  country  demanded  the  imme- 
diate settlement  of  the  northwestern  boundary.  President  T.\ler,  in  his 
annual  message  to  Congress  in  1843,  declared  that  "United  States 
rii^hts  appertain  to  all  between  42°  and  54°  40'  ".  Slave  interests  were 
tlien  negotiating  for  Texas,  and,  to  gain  it  without  interference,  Calhoun 
was  discussing  a  settlement  with  the  British  minister  with  the  forty- 
ninth  parallel  as  the  Oregon  boundary,  which  the  latter  rejected,  as  his 
predecessor  had  in  1807  when  Jefferson  had  proposed  the  same  line. 
The  Whigs  and  Henry  Clay  counselled  moderation  and  compromise, 
Ijut  the  Democrats  raised  the  war-cry  of  "  Fifty-four  Forty,  or  Fight ! " 
and  elected  Polk  as  the  champion  of  that  cause.  In  his  inaugural  raes- 
sa'j;(?  President  Polk  said,  "  Our  title  to  the  country  of  Oregon  is  clear 
and  unquestionable,"  and  in  his  first  message  he  declared  for  "  all  of 
Oregon  or  none."  Yet  through  party  spite  and  bickerings,  the  hatred 
of  Lewis  Cass,  who  led  the  "  Fifty-four  Forty  "  party  in  Congress, 
President  Polk  and  the  Southern  Democrats  retreated  from  their  posi- 
tion, and  on  June  15,  1840,  Secretary  Buchanan  concluded  the  famous 
(h-ogon  Treaty  with  Minister  Pakenham  on  the  same  terms — the  line  of 
the  forty-ninth  parallel — as  offered  by  Calhoun  two  years  before  and 
by  Jefferson  forty  years  before. 

Thomas  H.  Benton  gives  his  own  views  and  defence  of  this  retreat 
from  the  first  position  of  his  party  in  regard  to  the  Oregon  Question  in 
his  Thirty  Years  in  the  United  States  Senate.  The  clearest  summinjj 
II])  of  the  situation  is  given  by  Mr.  Blaine  in  his  Twenty  Years  in  Con- 
frress,  vol.  i.,  chap.  iii. ;  and  later  (chap,  xiii.)  he  says :  "  Meanwhile,  .  .  . 
we  lost  that  vast  tract  on  the  north  known  as  British  Columbia,  the 
l)i)s,scssion  of  which  after  the  ac(iuisition  of  Alaska  would  have  given 
to  the  United  States  the  continuous  frontage  on  the  Pacific  Ocean,  from 
the  southern  line  of  California  to  Bering  Strait." 

By  the  treaties  of  1824-'25  the  limits  of  Russian  possessions  are 
thus  defined,  and  the  same  articles  were  repeated  in  the  Treaty  of  Wash- 
ington of  1867  : 

"  Conmiencing  from  the  southernmost  point  of  the  island  called 
Prince  of  Wales  Island,  which  point  lies  in  the  pai'allel  of  54  degrees 
40  minutes  north  latitude,  and  between  the  131st  and  the  133d  degree 
of  west  longtitudc  (meridian  of  Greenwich),  the  said  line  shall  ascend 
to  the  north  along  the  channel  called  Portland  Channel,  as  far  as 
the  point  of  the  continent  where  it  strikes  the  56th  degree  of  north 
latitude;  from  this  last-mentioned  point  the  line  of  demarcation  shall 
follow  the  summit  of  the  mountains  situated  parallel  to  the  coast  as  far 
iis  the  point  of  intersection  of  the  141st  degree  of  west  longitude  (of 
the  same  meridian);  and  finally,  from  the  said  point  of  intersection, 


50 


THE    BOUNDARY    LINE. 


■If:  ■! 


li   I 


the  sfiid  meridian  lino  of  the  141st  degree,  in  its  prolongation  as  far  as 
the  Frozen  Ocean. 

*'  IV.  With  reference  to  the  line  of  demarcation  laid  down  in  the 
preceding  article  it  is  understood — 

"1.  That  the  island  called  Prince  of  Wales  Island  shall  belong 
wholly  to  Russia  "  (now  by  this  cession,  to  the  United  States). 

"  2.  That  whenever  the  siunmit  of  the  mountains  which  extend  in 
a  direction  parallel  to  the  coast  from  the  56th  degree  of  north  latitude 
to  the  point  of  intersection  of  the  Hist  degree  of  west  longitude  shall 
prove  to  be  at  the  distance  of  more  than  ten  marine  leagues  from  the 
ocean,  the  limit  betwe<'n  the  British  possessions  and  the  line  of  coast 
which  is  to  belong  to  Russia  as  above  mentioned  (that  is  to  say,  the 
limit  to  the  possessions  ceded  by  this  convention)  shall  be  formed  by  a 
line  parallel  to  the  winding  of  the  coast,  and  which  shall  never  exceed 
the  distance  of  ten  marine  leagues  therefrom." 

The  boundary  line  from  Mt.  St.  Elias  to  Portland  Channel  has  not 
been  surveyed  nor  determined.  For  the  last  twenty -eight  years  of  Rus- 
sian ownership  the  "  Thirty-mile  Strip,"  as  it  was  called,  was  leased  to 
the  iludson  Bay  Company,  who  paid  an  annual  rental  for  the  territory 
Canada  now  claims  as  partly  her  own. 

The  recent  growth  of  Alaska  and  British  Columbia  has  made  the 
international  boundary  a  question  of  moment  and  interest,  and  "  Fifty- 
four  Forty  "  may  again  become  a  campaign  slogan. 

During  the  Fisheries  Conference  at  Washington  in  1887-'88  an  in- 
formal discussicm  of  the  Alaska  and  British  Columbia  boundary  was 
ccmducted  by  Di-.  W.  H.  J)all,  of  the  Smithsonian  Institution,  and  Dr.  (J. 
M.  Dawson  of  the  Dominion  Geological  Survey,  both  scientists  of  first 
repute,  and  both  persimally  acquainted  with  the  regions  under  discussion. 
Dr.  Dawson  presented  a  new  map  showing  the  boundary  line  claimed  by 
his  Covernnient,  as  drawn  by  Major-(ieneral  R.  D.  Cameron,  whitli 
narrows  the  thirty-mile  strip  to  five  miles  in  width  in  many  places,  and 
absoibs  it  entirely  as  part  of  British  Columbia  in  others.  This  Cameron 
line  leaps  bays  and  inlets ;  gathers  in  all  of  Glacier  Bay,  Lynn  Canal, 
and  Taku  Inlet;  takes  all  of  theStikine  River,  and,  ■  stead  of  followinjj; 
"along  the  channel  known  as  Portland  Channel,"  it  strikes  to  tide- 
water at  the  head  of  Burroughs's  Bay  and  follows  by  Behm  Canal  anti 
Clarence  Strait  to  Dixon  Entrance.  By  this  arrangement,  Revillagigedo, 
Wales,  and  I'earee  Islands  and  the  great  peninsula  between  Behm  Canal 
and  Portland  Canal,  are  annexed  to  British  Columbia ;  also  the  islands 
of  the  Gravina  group,  on  one  of  which  Mr.  Duncan's  colony  of 
Metlakahtlans  have  found  refuge — the  island  which  the  United  States 
used  for  a  military  post  a  d  then  for  a  custom-house  for  twenty  years, 
and  even  Mary  Island,  where  the  U.  S.  custom-house  now  stands. 
Claiming  all  of  the  Alaska  coast  up  to  Sti"  by  this  arrangement,  the  late 
Sir  John  Robson,  Premier  of  British  Columbia,  suggested  that  the 
United  States  yield  up  the  small  remaining  sti'ip  of  mainland  between 
56''  and  St.  Elias,  for  certain  concessions  in  sealing  matters.  All  Cana- 
dian maps  are  now  drawn  according  to  the  Cameron  line ;  and  tlic 
Canadians,  who  are  keenly  alive  to  the  advantages  of  |  ossessing  this 


THE    SOUTHERN    ISLANDS. 


51 


territory,  have  repeatedly  called  the  attention  of  tlie  United  States  to  a 
mutter  which  has  seemed  to  be  regarded  with  indill'erence  on  our  side  of 
tlic  line.*  The  U.  S.  coast  and  (Jeodetic  Survey  has  made  careful  sur- 
reys of  the  Portland  Canal,  Behni  Canal,  and  St.  Elias  regions,  and 


iiiaiked  the  crossing  of  the  line  of  the  Hist  meridian  on  the  Yukon 
Kiver;  and  late  in  1892  Prof.  T.  C.  Mendenhall  was  ajjpointed  commis- 
sioner on  the  part  of  the  United  States,  and  Mr.  W,  F.  King  on  the 
part  of  Canada,  to  consider  and  determine  the  true  line. 


The  Southern  Islands. 

Vancouver  divided  the  island  belt  above  Dixon  Entrance  into  the 
Prince  of  Wales  and  the  George  the  Third  Archipelago.  The 
two  were  as  often  known  as  the  ^itkan  Archipelago,  and  in  18C7 


*  See  Century  Magazine,  July,  1891:  "The  Disputed  Boundary 
between  Alaska  and  British  Columbia."  Also  Extra  Senate  Document, 
No.  146,  Fiftieth  Congress,  2d  Session,  Report  on  the  Boundary  Line 
l»etween  Alaska  and  British  Columbia. 


hi).  I 


I 


P*  III 

it 


52 


THE   SOUTHERN   IHLANDH. 


Professor  Davidson  sufrjiested  the  present  name  of  tlie  Alexander 
Archipelago,  in  com])1iinent  to  the  Hussian  emperor. 

The  nwlitary  post  of  Fort  Tongass  was  built  on  an  islet  between 
Wales  Island  and  the  mainland,  facing  the  Tlvkhonnili  Harbour  of  Rus- 
sian traders,  as  often  called  Clement  or  Crescent  City.  The  buildings 
were  on  the  bluff  on  the  N.  side  of  the  island,  10  miles  distant  from 
Fort  ShnpHon.  The  garrison  was  soon  withdrawn,  and  a  customs  officer 
remained  until  1889.  The  rainfall  of  1183()  in.  a  year,  and  the  splen- 
did cedar-trees  8  ft.  in  diameter,  made  it  famous. 

The  Tongass,  Tumgass,  Tamgas,  or  Tunghash  tribe  of  Tlingits 
were  only  the  remnant  of  a  great  people  nu.  >bering  500  altogether  in 
18f)9,  and  diminished  to  225  in  1890.  A  swaujpy  trail  leads  a  half 
mile  across  the  island  from  the  fort  to  their  chief  village,  where  24 
massive  totem-poles  guard  the  seuncircle  of  ruinod  lodges. 

A  tablet  on  one  house  reads : 

"to  the  memory  of  ebbetts, 

HEAD  CHIEF  OF  THE  TONGASS, 

WHO   DIED   IN    1880,    AGED    100    YEARS." 

Two  fine  totem-poles  also  record  the  honours  of  this  Neakoot,  wlio 
assumed  the  name  of  John  Jacob  Astor's  Captain  Ebbetts,  as  a  compli- 
ment to  that  trader. 

There  are  beautiful  views  around  the  island,  and  a  canoe  can  thread 
myriad  forest-walled  lanes,  in  one  of  which  there  is  a  ledge  of  slate 
glittering  with  superb  garnet  crystals. 

Vancouver  named  the  small  sharp  point  of  the  mainland  for  the 
Right  Hon.  Charles  James  Fox,  and  the  bay  beyond  for  Quadra,  the 
Spanish  commandant  at  Nootka.  Salmon  canneries  were  established 
at  both  places  during  the  salmon  boom  of  18S3-'84,  but  the  Cape  Fox 
cannery  was  moyed  to  Ivuhikan,  in  Tongass  Narrows,  and  the  Boca  ile 
Quadra  was  deserted  after  a  few  seasons. 

Mary  Island  Customs  District. 

The  first  flag  and  light  seen  on  the  Alaska  coast  are  at  the  U.  S. 
custom  house  on  Mary  Island,  a  green  dot  named  for  the  daughter 
of  Admiral  Winslow,  who  cruised  past  it  with  her  father  in  the  U.  S.  S. 
Saranac  in  18*72.  This  Government  station  was  built  in  1891,  and  one 
may  see  the  white  buildings  from  afar,  or  hear  the  siren  wailing  when 
mists  or  darkness  brood  upon  these  reef  and  rock  strewn  waters.  Ships 
may  enter  and  clear  at  Mary  Island,  and  the  deputy  and  a  row-boat  are 
expected  to  exert  a  sufficient  moral  force  to  prevent  the  Juneau  whis- 
ky fleet  from  taking  on  contraband  cargo  anywhere  across  the  British 


THE    HOUTIIERN    ISLANDS. 


53 


line  and  scattering  to  northward  by  myriad  channolH.  A  few  years  ago 
tlicro  were  21  mossy  old  totem-poles,  many  ruined  houses  and  picturesque 
(graves  over  on  Cnt  Mand,  where  a  larjijc  community  used  to  dwell ;  but 
many  of  the  venerable  coiui/ins  have  been  cut,  stolen,  burned,  and 
wantonly  defaced. 

The  Gravina  Islands  were  first  seen  and  named  by  Caamanc. 
Anintte,  the  largest  island  of  the  group,  is  17  miles  in  length  and  over 
4  ill  width,  and  was  named  for  Mrs.  William  II.  Dall  in  1880.  It  is 
mountainous  throughout,  and  Mt.  Taniffas,  9,684  ft.  in  height,  retains 
its  snow-cap  throughout  the  year,  and  is  easily  distinguished  from  any 
side. 

Point  Davison  was  christened  by  Vancouver  in  honour  of  Alexander 
Davison,  owner  of  the  fleet's  storoship,  and  the  Englishmen  camped  for 
a  uight  at  that  place.  Nirh(<!/H  Paxs,  separating  Annette  and  Gravina 
Islands,  was  named  for  Captain  II.  E.  NichoUs,  U.  S.  N.,  who  first  sur- 
veyed its  dangerous  ledges.  He  also  named  Port  Chester,  where  he 
found  the  ruined  houses  and  decaying  poles  of  a  Tongass  conmiunity, 
whom  the  Chilkats  had  massacred  sixty  years  before. 

New  Aletlakahtla. 

When  Mr.  Duncan's  people  sought  a  new  home  on  the  Alaska  side, 
the  site  of  this  deserted  village  offered  all  that  the  native  mind  deemed 
essential — a  good  beach  for  canoes,  sloping  land  for  cultivation,  a  good 
salmon  stream  near  by,  water-power  for  a  saw-mill,  and  nearness  to  the 
mail  steamer's  route.  It  is  almost  the  only  good  canoe  beach  in  the 
region ;  but  the  wind-swept  pass,  filled  with  reefs  and  tidal  cur- 
rents, is  the  dread  of  steamers,  and  there  is  but  a  cramped  anchor- 
age a  half  mile  off  shore.  In  bad  weather,  and  whenever  it  is  possible, 
the  mail  steamers  leave  their  consignments  at  Kkhikan,  the  distribut- 
ing station  in  Tongass  Narrows,  12  miles  distant,  and  tourists  I'arely  see 
the  actual  marvel  of  New  Metlakhtla. 

Mr.  Duncan  visited  Eastern  cities  of  the  United  States  in  1886-'87, 
and  speedily  enlisted  friends  to  aid  the  Metlakahtlans.  Rev.  Henry 
Ward  Beecher  and  Dr.  Phillips  Brooks  were  especial  champions  of  his 
cause,  but  all  creeds  and  people  as.'jisted.  Mr.  Duncan  was  assured  at 
Washington  that  his  people  would  be  protected  in  the  ownership  of 
any  lands  they  might  select,  whenever,  by  the  extension  of  the  general 
land-laws  to  Alaska,  that  Territory  was  open  to  settlement ;  and  the  act 
of  Congress,  March  3,  1891,  provided: 

"(Section  15.)  That,  until  otherwise  provided  by  law,  the  body  of 
lands  known  as  Annette  Islands,  situated  in  Alexander  Archipelago  in 


64 


TIIK   fiOUTIIKRN   IflLANDB. 


',.'f  ■'] 


■>f,  '' 


m^- 


111! 


II 


BdulluMsiern  Alaska,  on  the  X.  Hide  of  Dixon's  Kntrancc,  be,  and  tli«> 
Buitiu  i8  hereby,  net  apart  as  a  reservation  for  tlie  use  of  tlie  iMetlaiiuhtla 
Indians,  and  those  people  known  as  Motlakuhtlans,  who  have  recently 
emif;rated  from  British  Colunibia  to  Alaska,  and  such  other  Alaskan 
natives  as  nuiy  join  them,  io  be  held  and  used  by  them  in  common,  un- 
der such  rules  and  regulations,  and  subject  to  such  restrictions,  as  may 
be  prescribed  from  time  to  time  by  the  Secretary  of  the  Interior." 

Four  hnndred  Metlakahtlans  crossed  to  Alaska  in  the  si)ring  of 
1H8V.  Dedicatory  services  were  held  on  the  arrival  of  Mr.  Duncan, 
Augus't  7,  1H87;  the  United  States  flag  was  raised  and  saluted  by  the 
tolling  of  the  new  church-bell,  and  a  psalm  chanted  l)y  the  peojile.  The 
old  totem-poles  were  destroyed,  save  two  given  to  tlie  Sitka  Muscun), 
and,  apportioning  the  town-lots  according  to  their  own  rules  of  indi- 
vidual rank  and  precedence,  the  Metlakahtlans  began  building  their 
present  attractive  village.  The  saw-mill  was  burned  in  1880,  but  within 
six  weeks  it  was  rebuilt,  and  the  new  machinery  was  cutting  0,<»00  ft. 
of  lumber  a  day.  A  second  fire  de^-troyed  the  mill  in  March,  1892,  but 
it  was  again  rei)uilt;  and  in  January,  iHOIi,  the  mill  and  half  the  settle- 
ment were  burned. 

The  salmon  cannery  ships  from  6,000  to  8,000  cases  each  year,  and 
all  the  industries  of  the  old  Metlakahtla  have  been  revived.  They  print 
their  own  newspaper;  and  the  photographer,  the  silversmiths,  the 
carvers,  and  bark-weavers  do  a  large  business  on  the  occasional  tour- 
ist days.  The  church  and  the  octagonal  school-house,  the  boys'  and 
the  girls'  boarding-home,  Mr.  Duncan's  residence,  the  cannery,  the  saw- 
mill, and  the  store,  are  the  points  of  interest,  and  on  steamer  days  the 
band  plays  on  a  platform  built  on  the  tall  cedar  stump.  The  Govern- 
ment day-school  relieves  Mr.  Duncan  of  much  of  his  old  work,  and  Dr. 
Bluett  having  volunteered  his  services  to  the  people,  they  have  suit 
able  medical  attendance. 

The  original  Tsimsians,  with  the  Haidas  and  Tlingits  who  have 
joined  them,  havt»  all  subscribed  to  and  faithfully  lived  up  to  this  code : 

METLAKAHTLA,  ALASKA. 

DECLARATION    OF   RESIDENTS. 

We,  the  people  of  Metlakahtla,  Alaska,  in  order  to  secure  toonrselven  awl 
our  posterity  the  blessings  of  a  Christian  home,  do  scveralhf  suh- 
seribe  to  the  following  rules  for  the  regulation  of  our  conduct  and 
town  affairs : 

1.  To  reverence  the  Sabbath,  and  to  refrain  from  all  unnecessary 
secular  work  on  that  day ;  to  attend  divine  worship ;  to  take  the 
Bible  for  our  rule  of  faith  ;  to  regard  all  true  Christidus  as  our  breth- 
ren ;  and  to  be  truthful,  honest,  and  industrious. 

2.  To  be  faithful  and  loyal  to  the  Government  and  laws  of  the 
United  States. 


TIIK    ROrTIIERN    ISLA^I)^*. 


55 


3.  To  render  our  votes  when  called  u|Km  for  tlie  eleition  of  the 
Town  Council,  and  to  prom|ttIy  ol)e}'  tht  by  hiws  and  orders  imposed 
liy  tlic  said  Council. 

4.  To  attend  to  the  education  of  our  cliildrcn  ami  keep  them  at 
school  as  regidaily  as  possll)le. 

n.  To  totally  abstain  from  all  intoxicants  and  f^amblin^,  and  never 
attend  heathen  festivities  or  cojuitenance  In  athcn  cui-toms  in  surrouud- 
inj:  villaf^es. 

ft.  To  strictly  carry  out  all  sanitary  rej^ulations  necessary  for  the 
liealth  of  the  town. 

7.  To  identify  ourselves  with  the  progress  of  the  settlement,  and  to 
iililize  the  land  we  hold. 

8.  Never  to  alienate,  give  away,  or  sell  our  land,  or  building- 
lots,  or  any  portion  thereof,  to  any  person  or  persons  who  have  not 
subscribed  to  these  rules. 


The  N>i-u  Country. 

HcvillHgigedo  Inland,  (irst  seen  by  (Jray  and  Caamano,  was 
n;uned  by  Vancouver  in  honour  of  the  Conde  de  Revillagigedo,  Viceroy 
of  New  Spain,  who  sent  out  the  expeditions  of  Quadra,  Caamano, 
(iiliimo,  and  Valdes.  Its  Indian  name  Xn-n,  "  The  country  of  the  dis- 
tant lakes,"  arose  from  the  chain  of  pools  which  are  linked  throughout 
its  northern  half.  Measuring  50  miles  from  N.  to  S.  and  25  miles 
across  its  greatest  breadth,  it  is  almost  divided  by  the  long  inlet  named 
for  Captain  James  C.  Carroll,  which,  opening  from  Toikjoss  Narrown, 
cuts  to  within  a  couple  of  miles  of  liehm  '^a^rt/,  which  almost  encir- 
cles the  island  with  its  graceful  loop.  The  island  is  mountainous 
throughout,  and  its  deeply  indented  shores  lu  Id  some  beautiful  scenery. 
The  only  settlements  have  been  on  the  west  shores. 

Tiie  cannery  at  Kiehihtn,  or  Fish  Creek,  in  Tongass  Narrows,  has 
not  be'"\  rebuilt  since  the  fire  which  'estroyed  it  in  18.S5.  In  August 
this  small  stream  is  packed  with  humpbacked  salmon,  and  by  follow- 
ing the  trail  from  the  beach  for  200  yards  the  tourist  may  see  one 
of  the  oft-described  pools  crowded  from  bank  to  bank  with  salmon, 
and  watch  the  leaping  of  this  saltatory  species.  The  fall  is  .some  15  ft. 
above  the  level  of  the  pool  at  low  tide,  and  the  mass  of  salmon  coming 
in  with  the  flood  wait  until  the  waters  rise  their  regular  12  ft.  and 
shorten  the  jump.  Impatient  fish  are  always  making  the  dash  at  the 
fii'jo  of  the  fall,  regardless  of  the  tide,  during  the  weeks  when  the  hump- 
hacks  are  running.  Kichikau  is  a  centre  of  a  rich  salmon  country,  and 
all  the  waters  sparkle  with  leaping  fish  during  their  successive  "  runs." 
I'vint  Hitji/ins  was  named  by  Vancouver  for  the  Sefior  Vallenar  de  Hig- 


■^  '■■  4 


5a 


THE    SOrTHKKN    ISLANDS. 


gins,  the  President  of  ('';\ile,  and  Clorc  Pass  was  discovered  and  sur- 
veyed by  Lieutenant  Richardson  Clover,  U.  S.  N.,  wliile  in  command  of 
tlie  coast-fe;?rvey  steamer  Patterson. 

At  liOring,  at  the  entrance  of  Xnha  Bai/,  there  is  a  large  nalnion 
cannery  whicli  has  ubsorlx'd  in  tlio  on^  cstahlishnient  several  smaller 
canneries  and  fisheries,  and  packs  the  catch  of  half  a  dozen  streams  of 
the  neifrlibonihood.  'iiiere  is  a  [jost-ollice  and  trading-store  in  connec- 
tion with  it,  ;u)d  a  vilhige  of  Tongass  Indians  have  settled  beside  this 
permanent  settlement.  The  wreck  of  the  Anconvemnins  a  conspicuous 
object  on  the  rocky  shore,  where  it  was  blown  by  a  wilUnmo  or  "  wool- 
ly '  as  it  was  letting  go  from  the  wharf  ?X  high  tide  on  August  25, 1889. 
The  passengers  walked  down  the  gang-plank  as  the  ship  settled,  and, 
with  all  the  ship's  furni-h.iags  removed  to  the  cannery  loft,  living  there 
for  five  di^vs  until  the  next  steamer  retin-ned  them  to  Port  Townsend. 


!.!, 


THE  PACIFIC  SAI  MON. 

There  are  five  varieties  of  the  Pacific  salmon  ( 0/ico>7/y/i(7ms,  the 
hook-jawed*.  The  Pacific  salmon  anil  the  Pacific  trout  differ  so  from 
the  Atlantic  species  that  it  is  a  fine  (piestiou  wliether  there  are  any 
ti'ue  salmon  or  trout  on  that  coast,  and  whether  any  game  laws  cou  be 
legally  enforced  under  such  names. 

Ont'orhi/Hchus  (■h(>ui''hu,  or  king  salmoi:,  is  the  quimiat  of  the  Ct.- 
lumbia,  the  Cldnook  and  Takii  farther  X.,  but  everywhere  recognized 
as  the  tjn'c  (chief).  .Averaging  from  60  to  80  pounds  in  the  Stikine,  it 
increases  to  100  pounds  in  tlie  Yuk<m.  Its  flesh  is  pale,  and  coming  in 
pairs  and  not  in  great  schools,  it  is  not  the  whole  pack  of  any  one  can- 
nery. 

Oncorhiinehus  iierl-a,  the  i  ''  salmon,  is  the  blue-back  of  Oregon, 
the  sockeye  of  the  Frasei',  tand  tlie  canner's  favourite  because  of  the 
toughness  and  me  deep  tint  of  'ts  flesh.  It  averages  6  and  lU  pounds 
in  weight,  an('  vidt;   ihe  coast  iv  incredible  nnndiers. 

OncorhjiiH\<,(H  kis.'fc/i,  tiie  silver  salmon,  is  tlie  most  beautiful  of 
its  kind  and  the  most  spiiited.  It  always  ciioo.ses  clear  witer,  and  leaps 
falls  with  agility.  Its  flesh  is  pale,  an.d  is  unfit  for  canning  within  a 
few  hours  after  'anding. 

Oncorhtpichus  gorhnseha^  the  humpback,  is  most  abundant  of  the 
species,  anil  averages  from  5  to  10  pounds.  The  i)ale  flesh  cooks  soft  in 
cans  and  is  not  desired  for  packing,  although  of  fine  flavour.  The 
humpback  is  even  more  plentiful  than  the  red  salmon,  and  can  outjumj) 
an\  other  species.  Their  leap,  have  not  been  recorded,  like  that  Dram- 
men  River  salmon  in  Norway  tlntt  jumjied  16  ft.  up  the  face  of  a  fall, 
but  Lieutenant  Niblack  photographed  one  in  the  act  of  springing  eight 
feet. 

The  first  run  of  tyea'  corues  in  the  early  spring.  In  June  the  led 
Balmou  come  in  by  Dixuu  Entrance,  closely  followed  by  the  silver  sahn- 


THE    SOUTHERN    ISLANDS. 


57 


and  Bur- 
nnancl  of 

e  salmon 
il  smaller 
Teams  of 
3  connec- 
3side  this 
ispicuous 
>r  "  wool- 
25, 1889. 
tied,  aiul, 
ing  tiiere 
viisend. 


IC?IUS,  tll(' 

r  so  from 
e  are  any 
vs  can  bo 

If  the  €(.- 
iCognlziMi 
^tikine,  it 
'oming  in 
one  can- 

f  Oregon, 
■ie  of  thf 
pounds 

lUiful  of 

md  lea{)s 

within  il 

t  of  the 
3  soft  ill 
■ur.  Tlic 
ont.jumj* 
It  Dram- 
>f  a  fall, 
ng  eight 

i  the  ri'd 
er  salm- 


on. In  August  the  humpbacks  appear,  and  in  September  there  is  a 
lust  run  of  fi/ces  to  the  up-stream  and  mountain  lake  spawning-grounds. 
Tilt'  young  salmon  soels  the  sea  with  the  high  water  in  spring,  and  re- 
turns p.t  the  end  of  t.vo  years  to  its  birthplace. 

The  malma  or  Dolh  Varden  trout  follow  the  salmon  in  from  the 
sen  to  devour  their  eggs,  and  the  crudest  tackle  l)aited  with  salmon 
roe  will  catch  1  and  5  j)ound  fish  of  the  most  beautiful  colouring. 

There  is  also  the  cut-throat  trout,  with  the  vivid  red  mark  below 
tlie  gills,  and  tlie  large  steel  head,  (iairdner  or  rainbow  trout,  so  often 
classed  as  a  salmon,  and  packed  as  speckled  salmon  at  many  canneries. 
Prof.  David  S.  Jordan,  the  first  authority  on  I'acilic  coast  fish,  siiys  that 
any  one  who  can  count  can  tell  the  difference  between  i\  .  '.linon  and  a 
tiout.  A  Pacific  salmon  has  from  I'i  to  10  rays  in  the  anal  or  last 
lower  fin,  while  a  trout  has  but  t>  or  10  rays.  The  original  Atlantic 
salmon  has  but  10  or  11  rays  in  the  anal  fin. 

Fine  distinctions  as  to  pans,  charrs,  smolts,  and  grilses  are  not 
weighed  in  Alaska.  The  canners  desire  only  an  abundance  of  firm,  red- 
tleslied  fish. 

The  rivalry  of  Alaska  canneries  greatly  injured  the  business  on  the 
Columbia.  The  87  canneries  in  Alaska,  representing  an  investment  of 
nv)'.\  than  $4,000,000,  employ  between  5,oOt>  and  <),00(>  people  and 
IDO  steam-vessels.  The  pack  of  ISOl,  amounting  to  TS'.^ooo  cases  of 
48  one-pound  tins  each,  so  overstocked  the  market  that  a  combination 
was  formed,  20  canneries  were  closed,  and  the  i)ack  of  1892  reduced 
10  4(H>,000  cases.  Only  2  of  the  17  camieries  in  southeastern  Alaska 
were  operated  that  year,  those  at  Loring  and  Chilkat.  In  181»8  the 
pack  was  limited  to  650,0()0  cases. 

SALMON  CANNERIES. 

At  Lonng  the  best  opportunity  is  afforded  for  watching  the  can- 
ning of  salmon,  which  is  in  progress  from  June  to  September  by  a 
hirgi.'  force  of  Chinese  contract  workmen.  The  seining  and  outdoor 
work  are  done  by  white  men,  a  few  Indians  being  sometimes  employed 
under  them.  Wi)ile  industrious  to  a  degree,  the  Tlingit  cannot  be  de- 
pended "vipon ;  and  the  native  is  too  apt  to  strike,  to  start  upon  a  p'  i- 
longed  potlatch,  or  go  berrying  or  fishing  on  his  own  account,  in  the 
height  of  the  salmon  run.  In  the  skilful  nuinipulation  of  the  cans  and 
machines  within  doors,  neither  he  nor  the  white  man  can  ai)pi()ach  the 
automatic  exactness  and  dexterity  of  the  Cliinese,  who.  being  paid  l)y  the 
piece,  take  no  account  of  a  day's  working  hours,  and  keep  the  ma- 
cliinory  moving  as  long  as  there  are  fish  in  the  cannery.  The  fish  are 
tiirowu  from  the  arriving  scows  to  a  latticed  floor,  or  loaded  directly 
into  the  trucks  and  rolled  into  the  cannery.  The  cleaner  seizes  a  fish 
and  in  two  seconds  trims  and  cleans  it — beheading,  (h'tailing,  and  rend- 
ing it  with  so  marxy  strokes  of  his  long,  thin  knife.  It  is  washed, 
scrajied,  cut  in  sections  the  length  of  a  can,  packed,  soldered,  steamed, 
tested,  vented,  steamed  again,  resoUk-red,  lac(iuered,  labelled,  and 
boxed.  The  tin  is  taken  up  in  sheets,  and  an  ingenious  machine 
5 


':» 

jl.'jjfii- 

'■«;''*';''•* 

'iMUi 

1 

IT 

9! 

f 

m 

1i! 

m^ 


I! 


:l 


itjs* 


li 


THE   SOUTHERN   IP  LANDS. 


punches,  rollr*,  and  fits  the  covers  to  the  can?,  which  roll  dwtwi  an 
inclined  gutter  of  melted  solder  which  closes  the  edges.  The  experts 
can  tell,  by  a  tap  of  the  finger,  if  each  can  is  air-tight.  If  not  her- 
metically closed,  the  contents  rapidly  change,  burst  the  cans  m  transit 
"  below,"  or  explode  unpleasantly  in  distant  markets.  The  Alaska 
cannera  are  not  held  to  any  restricti^ms  as  in  British  ('o^umb**.  not 
taxed  or  hindered  in  any  way.  They  iiiaj  take  any  piece  of  ginwiKi 
they  see  fit  in  tracts  of  ICO  acres,  and  receive  a  patent  after  paying 
$1.25  an  acre  and  the  cost  of  survey.  There  is  no  tax  upon  cannery 
boats,  no  limit  to  the  size  of  net-meshes,  no  close  season,  and  the  salm- 
on inspector,  wtto  is  supposed  to  prevent  the  placing  of  weirs  and 
traps  in  the  streams,  has  no  vessel  at  his  command  with  which  to  en- 
force the  laws.  The  canneries  drain  the  country  of  their  natunil 
wealth ;  make  no  permanent  settlements,  nor  any  improvements ;  spemi 
almost  nothing  of  their  profits  in  the  Territory ;  and  are  a  fruitful 
source  of  trouble  and  corruption  among  the  native  people. 

The  Revillagigedo  Lakes  and  Behm  Canal. 

The  famed  beauty  of  Naha  Pay  is  not  apparent  fioni  Lorin^ 
There  is  a  fine  waterfall  a  quarter  of  a  mile  above  the  cannery,  reaelwd 
by  a  trail  through  the  woods.  Two  miles  above  Loring  tb«  ^j^y  tk»t 
rows  and  terminates  in  a  cul-de-sac^  where  1U,00U  salmo*  have  \tfA\\ 
drawn  ashore  from  a  single  cast  of  the  seine.  A  sharp  pf>int  of  land 
separates  this  cove  from  the  first  in  the  chain  of  four  lakes,  and  the 
connecting  stream  is  less  than  100  ft.  in  length.  This  Lake  Adorahh 
is  more  properly  a  lagoon,  as  it  is  12  ft.  below  high-tide  mark,  and  the 
cascading  stream  empties  and  fills  the  lake  by  turn,  and  the  seine  i.s 
cast  at  either  end  of  these  rapids. 

Lake  Adorable,  as  it  was  named  in  1885  is  4  miles  long  and  2 
miles  across,  with  magnificent  mossy  forests  closely  surrounding  it.  It 
glitters  with  leaping  salmon  all  summer  long,  as  they  cross  it  to  run 
the  gauntlet  of  the  cascading  streams  that  join  lake  to  lake  far  into  tlio 
heart  of  the  island.  Large  salmon  have  several  times  taken  trout-fiit> 
from  these  shores  and  wrecked  light  rods.  (Jreedy  malma  follow  with 
the  salmon,  and  may  always  be  caught.  Boih  black  and  ciimamon 
bears  are  found  on  the  island.  They  are  first  seen  in  spring,  when 
they  come  out  to  feed  upon  the  skunk-cabbage  [Lym'Jiton  KamrhcUktt'- 
«wi),  which  with  its  huge  tropical  leaves  is  like  a  banaiui-tree  halt 
buried.  Fovir  black  bears  have  been  seen  at  once  pawing  salmon 
ashore  from  the  sedges  along  Lake  Adorable,  and  in  the  dtnisc  salmon 
berry  thickets  and  along  the  shores  of  the  farther  lakes  they  are  less 
often  frightened  away  by  man.     The  old  smoke-house  on  the  stream 


THE   SOUTHERN   ISLANDS. 


59 


cuimecting  the  first  and  second  lakes  has  several  times  been  used  as  a 
«poit>iaan's  camp,  and  touches  upon  the  most  complete  wilderness, 
while  near  to  a  base  of  supplies.  There  is  a  small  red  deer  on  the 
i<l:  11(1,  but  the  skin-hunters  threaten  its  early  extermination  in  the 
rej;ion,  as  25,000  skins  were  shipped  from  Loring  in  18',»0.  Wolves 
are  numerous;  geese,  swans,  mallard,  teal,  and  a  so-called  eanvas-back 
duek  flock  by  the  farther  lakes;  and  eagles  always  tempt  shots  \>hen 
a  sportsman  has  once  seen  the  extjuisitely  fiiie  and  downy  robes  made 
from  their  breasts. 

Escape  Point,  at  the  northern  entrance  of  Xaha  Bay,  celebrates 
Vancouver's  escape  from  the  Indians  who  attacked  his  party  in  Trai- 
(orx''  Cove,  3  miles  beyond.  Canoes  had  followed  the  white  men  from 
tlie  l)end  of  Behm  Canal,  and  "  the  old  vixen,"  with  the  large  labrette  in 
her  lip,  who  steered  and  commanded  the  largest  canoe,  was  bent  on 
hostilities  from  the  start.  While  the  three  boats  were  separated,  the 
vixen  came  alongside  Vancouver's  yawl,  snatched  the  lead-line  and 
made  fast  wi  h,  i*,  Her  crew  donned  wolf  masks,  jumped  aboard  and 
seized  the  muskets ;  five  canoes  closed  in,  their  crews  shouting  and 
dancing.  The  commanding  virago  was  plainly  exhorting  them  to  an 
attack,  when  ""V  ancouver  gave  the  order  to  fire  with  the  weapons  they 
liad  drawn  from  the  anns-chest.  Those  in  the  small  canoes  rolled  out 
uiul  swam  ashore.  Those  in  the  big  war  canoe  cut  the  line,  and  all 
prang  to  one  side,  careening  the  canoe  so  that  its  side  shielded  them 
i  s  they  paddled  away.  Two  of  Vancouver's  men  were  wounded,  and 
jefore  they  could  proceed  the  swimmers  climbed  the  sheer  bluff  and 
hurled  rocks  down  upon  the  boats. 

Yess  Bay^  on  the  mainland  shore  opposite  Ti-aitors'  Cove,  is  a 
mere  ship-way  through  the  forest,  navigable  by  large  steamers  for  2 
miles  to  a  point  where  the  cannery  is  situated,  and  accessible  only  to 
canoes  beyond  that  point.  The  narrow  i)assage  is  exceedingly  j)ietur- 
es(|ue,  and  the  brawling  stream  by  the  cannery  leads  to  a  lake  of  great 
beauty,  where  60  pounds  of  trout  have  been  lured  by  the  commonest 
tly  in  two  hours.  The  Coast  Survey  named  ♦he  place  MdJonakl  Bay, 
liut  the  local  name  having  become  well  established  in  commerce  before- 
liiiiid,  it  is  only  alluded  to  as  Yens  Bni/. 

Bi(rronghs's  Boy,  at  the  mouth  of  the  Unuk  River,  is  a  deep  bowl  in 
tilt'  njountains  where  Vancouver  fished  in  August,  179;j,  and  called  his 
prizes  "hvmchbacked  salmon."  "They  had  little  of  the  colour  and 
nothing  of  the  flavour  of  salmon,  and  tucy  were  very  insipid  and  indiffer- 


K*i 


ih 


60 


THE    SOUTHERN    ISLANDS. 


i\f^  ■ 


W  11 


f 


m  m 


ent  food,"  he  wrote.  The  shores  were  covered  with  dead  salmon  then,  as 
they  are  now  at  tl^c  height  of  the  nm,  when  the  retreating  tides  strand 
acres  of  fish  on  the  river  bars.  A  cannery  was  established  at  Bur- 
rougbs's  Bay  in  1885,  and  while  it  was  in  operation  the  mail  steamers 
regularly  made  the  tour  of  Behm  Canal*.  There  is  placer  gold  in  the 
bars  of  the  U/iuk  Tilvo;  u  turbid,  glacier-fed  stream,  which  heads  IdO 
miles  inland.  It  is  navigable  for  70  miles  by  canoe,  but  hunters  of 
the  bear,  mountain  goat,  and  mountain  sheep,  which  abound  in  this 
region,  are  warned  by  the  suiveyors  of  dangerous  rapids  and  wliiil. 
pools. 

The  mainland  shores  are  very  abrupt  all  along  Behm  Canal,  tlie 
way  is  narrow,  and  Commander  Newell,  U.  S.  N.,  who  was  among  the 
first  to  carry  a  large  steamer  around  Revillagigedo,  declares  the  view 
northward  from  Point  JSykcs  the  finest  in  southern  Alaska.  The 
landmark  in  that  stictch  '*s  the  New  Eddystone  Rock  which  rises 
like  a  ruined  vine-clad  tower  250  ft.  liom  the  water,  with  a  circumfer- 
ence of  less  than  50  yards  at  the  l)ase.  There  are  a  few  crevices  in 
its  side  to  maintain  the  green  wreaths  and  plumes  that  permanently 
decorate  it,  and  it  could  be  easily  scaled.  Vancouver  named  it  after 
breakfasting  on  its  sandy  base ;  and  in  1879  the  Coast  Survey  named 
the  Kudyard  Bay  and  the  other  points  near  it  for  engineers  and  oth- 
ers coimectod  with  the  building  of  the  famous  Eddystone  Light  on  tlie 
coast  of  England. 

Prince  of  Wales  Island. 

Prince  of  Wales,  the  largest  island  of  the  Alexander  Archip»'l- 
ago,  is  second  in  size  to  Vancouver  Island,  extending  200  miles  from 
N.  to  S.,  with  a  breadth  of  20  and  00  miles.  It  is  a  miniature  conti- 
nent, with  an  island  l)elt  <m  the  ocean  co'ist  sheltering  a  continuous 
Imhh  /'(;ss<n/(\  navigable  by  canoes  and  launches.  It  is  mountainous 
throughout ;  cedar  groves  dot  its  shores  ;  fine  salmon  streams  lead  to 
scores  of  inoiintain  lakes,  and  in  climate  it  has  been  called  the  Lan- 
cashire of  the  coast.  Because  of  its  wealth  of  cedar  and  salmon.  Con- 
gress was  once  asked  to  declare  the  island  a  government  reservation  of 
ship  timber  for  the  use  of  the  navy-yards  on  the  Pacific  coast,  and  to 


*  Named  for  Major  Behm,  commandant  at  the  Russian  port  in  Kam- 
chatka, where  Cook's  ships  wintered  under  Captain  Kujg.  Geoi^'f 
Vancouver  was  midshipman  on  this  third  and  last  voyage  of  the  great 
navigator,  James  Cook. 


THE    SOUTHERN    ISLANDS. 

lease  the  salmon-fisheries.  The  very  mention  of  Altiskn  has  always 
been  sufficient  to  convulse  the  Congress  at  Washington  ;  and  altliough 
the  proposed  reservation  was  larger  than  the  State  of  New  .Jersey,  and 
would  have  brought  in  a  considerable  revenue,  the  humorous  legislators 
did  nothing. 

The  yellow  cedar  {Oupressis  fintkakrimn),  which  ranges  from  the 
Queen  Charlotte  Islands  to  Yakutat.  is  the  most  valuable  timber  on 
tilt'  Pacific  coast.  The  tree  reaches  a  diameter  of  5  and  8  ft.  und  a 
hcij-dit  of  150  ft.,  growing  in  patches  and  small  groves,  and  easily 
distinguished  from  the  rigid,  syiimietrical  spruces  ny  its  darker  foliage, 
its  ragged  and  uneven  limbs  with  their  plumy,  willowy,  tasselled  tips. 
It  lias  a  pale-yellow  colour  and  a  close  fine  grain,  exhaling  a  slight 
resinous  odour  wh"n  first  cut.  The  Chinese  valued  it  highly,  and  the 
Russians  carried  on  a  large  trade  in  cedar  logs.  At  Canton  it  was 
made  into  chests  that  passed  as  camphor-wood,  and  when  carved  and 
sieiited  was  palmed  off  as  sandal-wood.  It  is  as  much  the  aversion  of 
moths  as  are  the  other  fragrant  cedars.  It  is  the  one  ship  timber  of  the 
raoitic  coast,  the  only  wood  which  repels  the  teredo,  und  ships'  tim- 
bers have  been  found  to  be  sound  and  good  after  lying  under  water  for 
tiiiity  years.  The  few  vessels  built  of  yellow  cedar  have  the  best 
standing,  since  hulls  of  Oregon  pine  can  only  be  insured  as  A.  Xo.  1 
for  three  years,  and  the  average  I*uget  Sound  pile  is  eaten  tl.r.  .igh  in 
the  same  time.  One  million  dollars  a  year  is  said  to  be  spent  5u  driv- 
ing and  replacing  piles  in  Pugct  Sound  wharves,  while  the  yellow  cedai- 
of  Alaska  is  untouched,  and  ihe  law  forbids  its  exportation.  Small 
lots  of  yellow  cedar  h  ve  been  sold  at  Fortlanu  for  ^75  per  thousand 
feet;  local  cabinet-mmvers  hs.ve  made  much  use  of  it,  and  lion.  Wil- 
liam II.  Seward  secured  enough  cedar  during  his  visit  to  Alaska  to 
finish  the  great  hall  of  his  Auburn  residence.  The  aatives  use  this 
wood  for  canoe  and  liouse  building,  for  totem-poles  and  all  carved 
work.  The  inner  bark  furnishes  them  witli  a  tough  fibre  which  re 
places  ropes  or  thongs,  and,  finely  shredded,  is  woven  into  nmts,  sails, 
i)lankcts,  baskets,  and  hats.  They  destroy  countless  trees  by  this 
girdlini;.  and  ghosts  of  dead  cedars  show  all  along  shore. 

All  the  S.  and  W.  coast  of  Prince  of  Wale-  Island  is  historic  ground. 
At  Cape  Chacon,  or  the  traders'  Musatchie  Nose,  Juan  Perez  landcii  in 
1771,  and  finding  a  native  with  a  Russian  gun  in  liis  possession,  marked 
tlio  line  of  54°  40'  as  the  limit  of  Russian  rule,  and  by  the  same  token 
the  northern  boundary  of  Spanish  possessions. 

The  Haneagas  originally  claimed  all  the  ocean  shores,  but  one  hun- 
dred a.iu  fifty  or  two  hundred  years  ago  they  were  driven  northward  by 
the  Ilaidas  from  North  Island  of  the  Queen  Charlotte  group,  a  band  of 
pirates  and  freebootors  who  successfully  defied  the  neighbouring  tribes, 
and  terrorized  the  mainland  coast.  At  last  the  other  Ilaidas,  combined 
^vith  the  Nass  and  Tsimsian  warriors,  attacked  North  Island,  routed  the 


'■^'y-kk 


il^ 


1 

62 


THE   SOUTHERN   ISLANDS. 


renegades,  and  destroyed  their  villages.  The  survivors  put  to  sea, 
landed  on  the  opposite  shore  of  the  entrance,  and  in  time  pushed  their 
villages  up  to  Tlevak  Strait  and  around  to  Thorne  Bay,  on  the  E.  sitlc 
of  the  island.  They  drove  the  French  flag  from  this  coast  early  in  the 
century  by  killing  the  native  otter-hunters  whom  a  JVench  trader  hud 
leased  from  the  llussian  chief  manager  at  Sitka.  After  indemnifying 
the  Sitkans  for  their  28  dead  relatives  at  ^200  each,  the  Frenchman 
had  63  otter-skins  worth  -^5  each  to  take  to  Canton.  His  experience 
deterred  his  countrymen  from  competing  in  the  profitable  fur-trade  of 
the  Northwest  Coast. 

These  Tleviakans,  Kaigahnees,  or  Prince  of  Wales  Haidas,  have 
their  largest  village  at  Howkaii,  in  Cordova  Bay,  behind  Dall  Island. 
The  Boston  fur-traders  used  to  anchor  near  the  village  in  the  harbour 
which  Captain  Etholin  surveyed  in  1838,  and  named  American  Bnij. 
Howkan  is  a  Stikiiie  word  meaning  "  fallen  stone,"  and  the  original 
hoivkan  lies  on  the  beach,  whether  myth  or  meteorite  none  know. 

The  village  is  rarely  visited  by  mail  steamers,  receiving  its  mail 
and  consignments  by  small  steamer  from  Man/  hlaml  or  Fort  Wraiigfll. 
A  Presbyterian  mission  was  established  at  Ilowkan  in  1881.  In  18m:5, 
when  the  writer  first  visited  the  village,  it  was  a  place  of  toteniio 
delight.  Tall  totem-poles  guarded  houses,  and  skeleton  ruins  of 
houses,  crowded  to  the  water's  edge,  ranged  ba^;k  through  the  under- 
brush, and  lined  a  farther  beach  where  graves  and  ruins  were  en- 
tangled in  a  young  jungle.  Mosses  and  lichens  half  covered  the  faces 
of  the  crows  and  eagles,  grasses  and  ferns  flourished  in  every  crevice 
of  the  carvings,  and  bushes  and  even  young  spruce-trees,  10  ft.  higli, 
grew  on  the  tops  of  totem-poles.  Skolka,  the  head  chief,  had  a  magniii- 
cent  column  by  his  doorway,  with  two  children  with  storied  hats  aljovc 
his  ancestral  eagle  and  the  image  of  a  bearded  white  man  beneath  the 
bird.  He  read  a  sad  chajjter  of  his  fan^'ly  history  from  this  picture  rec- 
ord. A  woman  of  the  eagle  clan  went  to  gather  salmon-eggs  one  day, 
and  while  she  cut  fresh  branches  to  lay  in  the  water,  and  filled  lier 
baskets,  her  two  children  played.  When  she  was  ready  to  return  slie 
called  the  children,  but  they  ran  and  hid.  She  called  again  and  again, 
l)ut  they  answered  her  from  the  woods  with  the  voices  of  crows,  and 
for  many  moons  the  crows  mocked  her  cries.  It  was  believed  that  the 
white  traders  had  stolen  them.  The  lost  ones  never  returned,  and  the 
story  of  the  kidnapped  children  has  frightened  generations  of  litile 
eagles.  The  sui:ie  twins  and  trader  ornament  a  pole  in  Kasa-an  Bay, 
and  exhort  those  small  Kaigahnees  of  the  eagle  brand  to  civil  speech 
and  obedience.  Skolka's  next-door  neighlxiur  in  days  of  yore  was  an 
old  chief,  wlmse  young  and  prei.y  wife  found  a  big  frog  while  search- 
ing in  her  liege's  locks  one  day.  The  nine  days'  wonder  was  recorded 
in  the  next  tolem-pole  erected,  and  there  one  may  still  see  the  ohi 
chief,  the  frog,  and  the  moon-faced  bride  to  prove  the  tale. 

The  Kaigahnees,  like  every  tribe,  have  a  legend  of  a  great  flood  and 


THE    SOUTHERN    ISLANDS. 


63 


a  ^ill^le  canoe  cominj;  to  rest  with  two  survivors  on  the  top  of  a  moun- 
tain. In  1888  one  ancient  clainied  to  have  the  bark  rope  that  held 
flic  anchor  of  the  bif?  canoe  when  it  rested  on  the  high  mountain 
lu'liind  Ilowkan — a  taV  man  of  great  power.  They  have  a  tale  twin 
to  ours  of  Lot's  wife,  imt  their  Sodom  and  Gomorrah  were  on  Forrester 
Island,  and  a  brother  and  sister  fleeing  from  a  pestilence  were  both 
turned  to  stone,  because  the  woman  looked  back  while  crossing  a  river. 
Till  ir  petritied  bodies  still  stand  in  that  river,  and  their  petrified  lodge 
niav  he  seen  on  its  bank. 

When  Wiggins's  storms  were  promised  to  all  North  America  in  March, 
IHS'J,  a  white  man  at  Kasa-an  Bay  read  and  explained  the  prophecies 
to  the  Kaigahnees.  The  warning  ran  rapidly  from  village  to  village, 
and  at  Howkan  all  l)egan  moving  their  things  to  the  high  ground,  and 
wore  carrying  up  water  and  provisions  for  one  whole  afternoon.  They 
helioved  that  the  promised  tidal  wave  was  coming,  and,  at  the  time  set 
for  the  storm,  began  to  say,  "  Victoria  all  gone !  "  There  was  a  heavy 
storm  outside  that  March  night,  and  the  agent  of  the  trading  company, 
ri'tnrning  from  the  Klinquan  fishery  in  a  whale-boat,  was  drowned  by  a 
wave  upsetting  the  boat  as  he  let  go  the  tiller  to  furl  the  sail. 

It  was  at  Port  Bazan,  across  Dall  Island,  that  a  Kaigahnee  found 
tlio  remains  of  Paymaster  Walker,  who  was  lost  with  the  steamer  George 
S.  Wright,  in  February,  1873.  The  loss  of  the  Wright  was  one  of  the 
tragedies  of  the  sea,  and  is  still  a  current  topic  in  Alaska.  The  steamer 
left  Sitka  on  its  return  trip  to  Portland  with  several  army  officers  and 
tlieir  families  and  residents  on  board.  It  was  last  seen  at  Cordova 
Bay,  on  the  south  end  of  Prince  of  Wales  Island,  and,  in  the  face  of 
warnings,  the  captain  put  out  to  sea  in  a  heavy  storm,  as  he  was 
hurrying  to  Portland  for  his  wedding.  It  is  supposed  that  the  ship 
foundered,  or  struck  a  rock  on  the  Queen  Charlotte  shore.  The  most 
tenihle  anxiety  prev.cded  as  week  after  week  went  by  with  no  tidings 
of  the  Wright,  and  the  feeling  was  intensified  when  the  rumour  was 
>»tarted  that  it  had  been  wrecked  near  a  village  of  Kuergefatb  Indians, 
and  that  the  survivors  had  been  tortured  and  put  to  death.  Two  years 
after  the  disappearance  of  the  Wright  the  body  of  Major  Walker  was 
found  in  Port  Bazan,  recognizable  on)y  by  fragments  of  his  uniform 
that  had  been  held  to  him  by  a  life-preserver.  Other  remains  and  bits 
of  w.  jckage  were  found  in  the  island  recesses,  and  the  mystery  of  the 
Wright  was  cleared. 

In  the  Howkan  and  the  Kaigahnee  region  everything  has  been  named 
and  charted  three  and  four  times.  Cape  Muzon  itself  was  named  Capf 
.I/«/lo,?  by  the  Spaniards,  and  Vancouver  copied  the  name  incorrectly. 
Dixon  had  named  it  (-ape  Pitt  before  him,  and  Tebenkoff  called  it  Cape 
Kaijiahnee  afterward.  The  original  village  of  Kaigahnee  was  near  this 
eape,  but  since  its  abandonment  that  name  is  as  often  ap{)lied  to  Howkan. 
Kaigan  is  the  Japanese  word  for  strand  or  seashore,  and  its  use  in  this 
eoniieetion  gives  great  comfort  to  thos<>  who  contend  for  the  Asiatic 
origin  of  these  people.  The  missionaries  named  the  place  Jackson,  and 
the  Post-Office  Department  sent  blank'i  and  ctuicelling  stamps  marked 
Haida  Mission.    Captain  Nichols  resisted  all  appeals  to  enter  Jacknon  ou 


^\ 


'I:  I' 
i1i,-'^  'I 


i 


,>i 


r  - 


64 


THE   SOUTHERN   ISLANDS. 


the  (^oast  Survey  ch.irts,  and  the  Board  of  Geoi^raphie  Names  made 
Howhin  tlic  Icfjal  and  oHicial  appellation.  This  is  only  one  of  many 
similar  incidents  in  the  naming  of  the  region. 

The  Howkan  Mission  has  a  saw-mill  beyond  American  Bay,  and  the 
Klawiik  cannery  and  mill  are  niched  in  the  far  end  of  Bucarelli  Bay, 
that  pictures(iue,  cedar-lined  reach  where  Bodega  and  Maurelle  took 
possession  in  the  name  of  Spain  in  1775.  Mail  and  excursion  steamers 
never  visit  tliis  shore,  and  the  Klawak  cannery  runs  its  own  schooners  td 
San  J'rancisco,  and  steam  launches  to  Howkan,  or  Fort  Wrangel,  for 
mails.  \  mission  and  a  Government  school  care  for  the  Flanegas,  who 
inhabit  this  W.  coast,  a  tribe  quite  as  untamable  foi  a  century  as  the 
Kaigahnees.  There  is  an  inside  passage  from  Dixon  Entrance  to  Sumner 
Strait,  and  a  large  cannery  and  saw-mill  at  Shakan,  or  Chican,  off  the 
N.  end  of  Prince  of  Wales.  That  saw-mill  was  doing  a  large  business 
in  cedar  shingles  with  San  Francisco  in  1889,  when  the  zealous  timber 
agent  descended,  a  cargo  was  couliscated,  a  large  fine  levied,  and  the 
mill  was  silenced. 

Vancouver  sighted  the  "  very  remarkable  barren,  peaked  mountain  " 
on  the  N.  end  of  Prince  of  Wales,  which  he  named  for  his  friend 
Captain  Calder,  of  the  navy ;  but  other  navigators  briefly  describe  Mt. 
Calder  as  a  volcano,  and  tell  of  its  eruption  towards  the  close  of  the  last 
century.  The  northern  and  eastern  shores  of  the  island  down  to  Thornr 
Bay  are  claimed  by  the  Stikines,  and  their  first  village  is  in  Red  Boi/, 
the  Krmnaia  of  the  Russian  traders.  The  dreaded  Eye-opener^  or  Shoo- 
Fly  Rock,  is  off  its  entrance,  and  by  a  sharp  turn  a  ship  runs  into  a 
small  opening  that  narrows  until  it  can  barely  pass.  Beyond  this 
gateway  the  bay  rounds  out  into  a  placid  reach,  with  magnificent  trees 
crowding  to  the  water's  edge.  There  was  a  small  saltery  there  in  1884, 
and  another  at  Salmon  Creek,  E.  of  Red  Bay. 

Kasa-an  Bay,  on  the  E.  coast  of  Prince  o;  Wales  Island,  pene- 
trates some  17  miles  in  a  westerly  direction,  and  several  fine  salmon 
streams  empty  into  its  arms  and  inlets.  Skowl's  old  village,  the  original 
Kasa-an,  is  on  Skowl  Arm,  v/hich  opens  southwardly  near  the  entrance. 

At  the  time  of  Skowl's  death  his  village  held  17  great  lodges, 
and  the  threescore  totem-poles  constituted  the  finest  collection  of  their 
kind  in  Alaska.  This  chief  of  the  eagle  clan  wa^  an  autocrat  of  the 
old  school,  ruled  his  people  with  a  rod  of  iron,  held  them  to  the  old 
faiths  and  customs,  and  gave  missionaries  no  welcome.  A  totem-polo 
in  his  village  showed  the  image  of  a  priest,  an  angel,  and  a  book,  and 
was  intended  as  a  derisive  reminder  of  the  efforts  made  to  convert  him 


TFIE    SOL'THKHN    ISLANDS. 


65 


Tliore  is  an  intercstin<^  old  frmveyard  on  the  N.  shore,  half-way  up  Kasa- 
aii  Hay,  near  the  IJaronovioh  copper-mine,  wlilfh  was  niueh  exploited 
twenty  years  a<ro. 

Tiie  /itironovich  Fisherif  is  in  a  cove  of  Knrta  Bai/,  at  the  extreme 
Olid  of  the  opening,  and  was  established  at  the  time  of  the  transfer  by 
a  Kiissian  tiader  who  nuinied  Skowl's  datighter.  It  was  a  headquarters 
(if  sitiuj^glinj^  operations  duiin}^  the  first  years  of  United  States  owner- 
sliij)  of  Alaska,  and  Haronovieli  was  one  of  the  Hrst  of  pelaj^ie  sealers 
or  rooUery  raiders,  returninji;  with  '.>,()')(»  fur-seal  skins  from  a  mysterious 
cruise  in  a  small  schooner  in  the  sumniei-  of  ISCiH.  In  18S5  the  customs 
(illicers  found  over  S't'>,<'00  worth  of  jirepared  opium  at  this  fishery, 
packed  in  barrels  and  reaiiy  for  shipment  below  as  salt  salmon.  Since 
tliat  event  the  fishery  has  l)een  abandoned,  and  tlie  catch  of  Kusa-tni, 
yh/tifui,  Thovnc^  and  Sahiion  Bays  on  the  E.  coast  of  Prince  of  Wales 
Inland,  are  towed  in  scows  to  the  Lorinri  cannery. 

Cholmoiideley  Sound,  which  extends  inland  for  16  miles,  was 
named  by  Vancouver,  and  T)nm  Biuj^  its  scenic  boast,  with  Mt.  Eu- 
(hm,  8, BOO  ft.  high  at  its  end,  were  named  for  Mrs.  Richardson  Clover. 
Miiini  »S'oM»(/,  another  of  Vancouvei's  discoveries,  and  the  northern  arm 
reaching  almost  to  the  base  of  Mt.  Eudora,  is  much  lauded  for  its  scenic 
combination.  Niblaek  anchorage  was  named  for  Lieutenant  A.  P.  Nib- 
Iiuk,  U.  S.  N.,  who  conducted  the  surveys  in  this  region  and  gathered 
the  material  for  his  valuable  work  on  The  Coast  Indians  of  Southern 
Alaska  and  Northern  British  Cohuubia,  published  as  part  of  the  Report 
of  the  U.  S.  National  Museum,  1887-'88.  It  contains  the  fullest  ex- 
planation of  the  arts,  customs,  and  social  organization  of  these  interest- 
ing [)eople. 

This  report,  and  the  other  U.  S.  Government  publications  referred 
to,  cannot  be  purchased,  but  can  be  obtained  for  any  United  States 
(iti/.cn  who  makes  proper  apjtlication  to  a  Senator  or  Representative 
ill  Congress  from  his  State. 

Fort    Wraiigell. 

Vancouver's  Duke  of  Clarence  Strait  is  107  miles  in  length, 
and  at  its  northern  end  is  sensibly  discoloured  by  the  fresh  water  of  the 
Stikinc  River.  Fort  Wrangell,  on  the  island  of  that  name  off  the 
mouth  of  that  river,  was  i\\2  second  settlement  in  southeastern  Alaska 
after  Sitka,  and  commands  a  broad  mountain-walled  harbour  that  lies  80 
miles  in  from  the  open  ocean.  This  gives  it  warmer  and  drier  sum- 
mers and  colder  winters  than  places  on  the  outer  coast,  the  mercury 
often  rising  above  90"  in  July,  and  remaining  above  80"  for  a  fortnight 
at  a  time.     The  winter  average  of  28y°  leaves  the  harbour  o[)en,  and 


I 


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Su:  ■'?;»{ 


II 


mam 


f 


■.    s 


■  « 


lYi^-M,  u 


66 


THE    HOUTHEKN    ISLANDS. 


extreme  cold  is  rarely  known.  John  Miilrlmn  lilghly  extolled  its  l)lainl, 
aoothin};,  "  poultice-like  atmosphere,"  and  <;rcatl y  praised  the  mountain 
panorama  unrolled  to  (me  who  climbs  the  hill  behind  the  old  fort. 

The  first  settlement  on  WmniivU  /s/aiid  was  made  by  order  of  the 
chief  manati;er,  Admiral-Baron  Wranf^cU  who  sent  the  captain-lieutenant, 
Dionysius  JVodorovich  Zarembo,  dctwn  from  Sitka,  in  ISIM,  to  erect  a 
stockade-post,  and  with  the  aid  of  a  corvette  picvent  the  Hudson  Hay 
Company  from  re-cstal)lishinj;  tradinj^-posts  on  the  Stikine  Kivcr.  This 
liidimht  St.  DinnysiuH  was  built  on  tlie  first  jKtint  of  land  below  the 
wharf,  ami  with  tlie  hostile  threats  of  tlie  natives  Zarembo  succeeded 
in  drivinj;  off  the  Uritish  ship.  This  hindrance  to  the  free  navigation 
of  the  Stikine  was  a  plain  violation  of  the  Treaty  of  iH'i  I,  and  after  five 
years  of  diplomatic  controversy  it  was  settled  l)y  Russia  payinjj;  .£2(>,0U0 
indenmity  and  leasing?  all  the  Th'niii-)iiUe Strip  from  Dixon  Kntrance  to 
Yakutnt  to  the  H.  li.  ('o.,  first  for  a  term  of  ten  years,  and  then  by  re- 
newed leases  until  the  transfer  of  Itussian  AnuM'ica  to  the  United 
States.  Sir  (Jeorj^e  Simpson  considered  all  the  Hritish  possessions  in  the 
interior,  adjacent  to  the  Thirty-mile  Strip,  as  worthless,  unless  it  were 
leased  to  them.  He  named  the  new  post  Fort  Stikine,  and  his  men  led 
an  exciting  life  there,  their  fierce  neighbours  attacking  and  besieging 
them,  and  several  times  cutting  their  foot-bridge  and  the  ttume  that 
carried  water  to  the  fort.  After  the  discovery  of  gold  on  the  river  and 
the  infiux  of  miners,  fur-trading  languished,  the  river  posts  were  aban- 
(Umed,  and  there  was  little  loss  to  the  comjiany  when  its  lease  ended 
with  the  transfer  of  Russian  America  to  the  United  States. 

A  new  site  was  chosen  for  the  United  States  nnlitary  post  of  Fort 
Wrangell  in  1S07,  and  the  large  stockade  was  first  garrisoned  by  two 
companies  of  the  Twenty-first  Infantry,  that  renuiined  until  1870,  when 
the  post  was  abandoned,  the  ground  and  buildings  sold  to  W.  King 
Lear  for  $600.  The  discovery  of  the  Cassiar  mines,  at  the  head-waters 
of  the  Stikine,  and  sent  a  tide  of  new  life  into  the  deserted  street,  and  a 
company  of  the  Fourth  Artillery  occupied  the  barracks  from  1876  to  1877, 
when  the  Government  withdrew  its  troops  from  all  posts  in  Alaska. 
During  the  second  occupittion  the  tenants  fixed  the  rent  of  the  prop- 
erty, and  paid  the  protesting  landlord  a  tenth  of  what  he  might  have 
received  at  that  time.  In  1884  the  Treasury  Department  took  posses- 
sion of  the  buildings,  on  the  ground  that  the  sale  of  1870  was  illegal, 
and  installed  the  deputy-collector  in  the  fort.  Twenty  years  after  Mr. 
Lear's  purchase  of  the  property,  the  Sitka  court  decided  that,  as  the 
original  sale  was  illegal  and  unconstitutiomil,  Mr.  Lear  was  entitled  to 
his  $600  with  interest,  and  the  cause  celebre  was  ended.  As  the  old 
buildings  went  to  ruin,  they  lent  Fort  Wrangell  a  certain  interest  and 
picturesqueness,  and  the  weather-beaten  stockade  and  a  leaning  block- 
house were  most  sketchable ;  but  all  these  fine  studies  in  weather  tones 
and  lichen-growths  have  been  destroyed,  the  restorer  has  driven  pic- 
turesqueness  out  of  the  quadrangle,  and  the  old  quarters  are  used  by 
the  civil  officers — a  deputy-collector,  commissioner,  marshal,  postmas- 
ter, and  superintendent  of  education. 


#," 


TIIK    SOUTHKRN    ISLANDS. 


6T 


With  the  nlMindoniiiciit  of  the  mining  rcfrirms  up  tho  Stikino,  Fort 
Wiaiigt'ir.-t  trmli'  has  fallen  to  ahnost  nothing;,  ami  the  Haw-inill  rcpro- 
fCMt^  its  chief  iiiihistrv.  The  Stiliines  do  a  lai'f^e  curio  business  in  the 
siimuiei'  season,  and  tiie  trailers'  stores  oveiliow  with  eoaiw^  carvings, 
haslicts,  and  native  silver-work  A  few  furs  arc  brought  from  the 
Stikirie  country.  Speciiiu'ns  of  dark-gray  mica  slate,  s|)rinkled  with 
luge  almandite  garnets,  are  brought  from  a  ledge  near  I'oint  Rothsay 
for  sale. 

There  is  an  old  rivcr-i)oat  on  the  beach,  so  built  over  and  grown 
with  weeds  that  only  the  line  of  tin?  guards  suggests  its  origimil  estate. 
This  Riidthr  (irtiitt/f  dearecl  !^i:{r),<>()0  each  season  its  stern-wheel 
Im'iU  the  Stikine  flood,  and  when  its  machinery  gave  out  beyond  all  re- 
pair, it  WHS  floated  ashore,  and  was  a  profitalde  venture  as  a  hotel. 
TI.en  it  fell  to  the  mission  of  a  bakery,  whose  Chinese  pro|)rietor  gather- 
ing his  kind  about  him  msule  it  heaihpuirters  for  those  ('elestials  who 
|iaticntly  worked  abandoned  |)lacers,  atul  carried  much  Stikine  gold 
away  long  after  the  boom  had  broken. 

As  late  as  1HH;{  a  forest  of  totem-poles  rose  by  the  great  lodges  in 
the  Stikines'  village.  In  IHW.i  otdy  a  half  dozeti  renuiined,  and  the 
siiow  pair  guard  a  bay-win(h»wed  cottage  which  replaces  the  ancestral 
l(Mlge.  One  of  these  relates  the  legends  of  the  builder's  family,  the 
other  that  of  his  wife.  The  wife's  pole  is  surmounted  by  her  dan- 
totem,  the  eagle.  The  inuige  of  a  child,  a  beaver,  a  frog,  an  eagle,  a 
frog,  and  a  frog,  continue  to  the  ground.  This  frog  is  the  crest  of  a 
sub-family,  the  insignia  of  a  medicine-man,  a  pestilence,  a  ndraculous 
cure,  big  medicine,  or  as  the  food  of  the  eagle  naturally  represented 
wi'  it — all  according  to  as  many  interpreters.  The  builder's  pole  ii 
covered  with  his  own  iiiuige,  the  two-storied  hat  indicating  two  great 
potlatches  or  degrees  in  greatness.  Heneath  is  his  own  mother  totem, 
the  crow,  and  at  the  base  of  the  jmle  the  eagle,  the  totem  of  his  wife, 
and  hence  of  liis  children. 

The  wolf  and  the  whale,  from  two  famous  medicine-men's  grave, 
oiiKunent  the  old  parade-ground. 

Sh(ikrs\s  Gnivi\  on  the  point  reached  by  a  foot-bridge,  is  an  object 
of  interest.  Shakes  and  his  rival,  Qualkay,  were  in  evidence  when  Sir 
(icoige  Simpson  visited  Fort  Stikine  iri  1841.  Qualkay  long  ago  suc- 
cumbed and  was  set  away  in  charge  of  his  totemic  guardian,  but  Shakes 
cumbered  the  earth  for  another  forty  years,  causing  and  spilling  much 
bad  blood,  foraging  the  lower  coast  to  far  Xiscpuilly,  opposing  the  mission- 
aries, brewing  hoochiuoo,  and  quarrelling  with  the  other  village  chiefs 
as  long  as  the  breath  was  in  hi"  He  was  a  chief  of  the  old  school, 
like  Skowl,  and  when  he  died  tlici  was  a  wake  and  a  funeral  that 
paled  all  potlatch  tales  of  ok'.  Hi-  body  was  laid  out  in  state  trap- 
pings. Tlie  carved  (bests  were  ■•ile<i  high.  There  were  furs  and  blank- 
et^ galore;  tows  past  envious  cou.\ti ng ;  gangs  of  slaves,  and  last  the 
precious  heirloom  and  insignia  of  his  line — a  stuffed  giiz/ly  with  cop- 
per claws  and  eyes,  and  movable  jaws  that  assisted  at  great  dances  and 
ceremonies,  and,  being  possessed  by  the  body  of  a  man,  took  j)art  in 
theatrical  representations  that  depicted  the  great  family  legends.     In 


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THE   8TIKINE   RIVER. 


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delugo-tiine  Shakes's  ancestors  took  the  bear  into  their  canoe  and  saved 
biro  from  drowning.  When  the  canoe  grounded  on  a  mountain,  the 
bear  brought  them  food,  and  from  an  alliance  with  this  bear  were  de- 
scended all  his  people.  One  bear  column  shows  the  footprints  of  the 
bear  that  crawled  to  the  top  of  the  tree  whence  he  was  rescued  by 
Shakes's  ancestors ;  and  when  Shakes  was  laid  uway  in  a  balconied  pa- 
vilion on  the  Point,  a  bear  was  put  on  guard. 

Kadashan  has  inherited  the  orcu-stuff  that  rules  the  tribe  and  a  fine 
war  canoe.  For  u  sufficient  purse  he  and  a  rival  tt/ce  will  munter  crews 
of  thirty-two  and  paddle  a  spirited  race.  They  paddle  to  a  chant,  the 
fierce  old  war-song  of  the  "  northern  Indians "  that  spread  terror  on 
the  lower  coast. 

Shustacka  Point  was  the  home  of  another  chief,  who  long  defied 
the  missionaries'  efforts,  but  who  was  laid  awav  in  his  ornamented 
grave  soon  after  C7ah,  the  (Christian  Tsimsian,  acceded  to  the  Sti 
kines'  recpiest  and  opened  a  school  in  their  midst.  Mr.  Seward  and 
(teneral  Howard  had  vainly  appealed  to  mission  boards,  but  the  letter 
of  a  private  soldier  describing  the  pathetic  efforts  of  these  people  tc  do 
for  themselves  made  most  impression,  and  in  1877  the  Presbyterian 
Board  sent  Rev.  Sheldon  Jackson  to  investigate.  He  found  the  won- 
derful Clah  teaching  in  a  dance-hall  leased  from  the  miners,  and, 
guarded  by  the  chief  Toyatt,  opening  his  school  with  hymn  and  prayer. 
A  teacher  was  left  for  that  winter,  and  the  next  year  Mrs.  McFarland 
opened  a  girls'  boarding-sch(H)l,  which,  after  its  own  building  was 
burned,  was  united  with  the  Sitka  school.  A  Catholic  chapel  was  built 
during  garrison  «iays,  and  receives  )>eriodical  visits  from  the  Jesuit 
father  at  Juneau,  but  as  the  Tlingits  have  been  given  in  charge  of  the 
Presbyterian  Board,  the  Roman  church  does  not  attempt  any  evangel 
ical  work  am(mg  them.  A  Methodist  and  u  Presbyterian  cliurch  and 
Government  day  school  are  the  forces  at  work,  and  are  judged  sufti- 
cient  and  satisfactory. 

The  pre-emptor  of  the  old  company  gardens  beyond  the  fort  has 
proved  in  those  later  days  that  vegetable  and  poultry  raising  are  more 
certain  and  profitable  ventures  in  Alaska  than  mining.  Cabbages  and 
mangel-wur/x'l  reach  prodigious  si/e ;  cauliflowers  measure  18  inches 
around ;  and  peas,  beans,  lettuce,  celery,  rhubarb,  and  radishes  thrive. 
This  enthusiastic  planter  believes  that  he  could  have  ripened  wheat 
during  two  dry  summers,  and  perhaps  com.  Wild  timothy  grows  6  ft. 
high  in  old  clearings,  and  clover-heads  are  twice  the  size  of  Eastern 
clover,  each  blossom  wide-spread,  as  red  and  fragrant  as  a  cani'ition 
pink. 

The  Stikine  River. 

There  is  a  salmon  cannery  at  Labouchere  Bay,  2  mr'es  from 
Fort  Wrangell,  on  the  north  point  of  the  island.  A  trail  through  the 
woods  connects  the  two  settlements.  This  spot  is  better  known  as 
the  Point  Highfeld  of  Vancouver,  and  commands  a  view  of  the  mouth 
of  the  Stikine  River  and  the  high  peaks  surrounding  its  delta. 


m 


THE   8TIKINE   RIVER. 


69 


Although  Vancouver's  men,  in  reaching  this  point,  were  eurrouniled 
by  the  grey-green  and  turbid  flood  of  the  g^eat  stream,  they  did  not  din- 
cover  it,  the  third  great  river  of  the  coast  which  they  almost  entered 
unawares.  Captain  Cleveland,  of  the  American  sloop  Dragon,  and  Cap- 
tain Rowan,  of  the  Eliza,  visited  the  delta  and  leanied  of  the  great 
stream  in  1799.  Hudson  Bay  Co.  employes  knew  the  head-waters, 
s<K)n  after  their  repulse  by  Zarembo  at  Fort  Dionysius.  Mr.  Robert 
( 'iinipbell  tells  of  his  discovery  of  its  sources  in  a  letter  to  Senator  M. 
C.  Butler,  dated  Riding  Mountain  House,  Manitoba,  November  80, 
1881: 

""  Being  an  employ6  of  the  Hudson  Bay  Co.,  I  was  for  a  series  of 
yours  employed  by  it  in  exploring,  trading,  and  extending  the  trade  in 
the  till  then  unknown  part  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  and  especially  in 
search  of  rivers,  or  sources  of  rivers,  flowing  from  the  west  of  the 
mountains. 

'■'■  In  summer,  1838, 1  ascended  to  and  established  a  trading  post  at 
Deasc's  Lake  (since  then  a  gold  Held),  and  soon  after,  in  July,  I  crossed 
the  mountain  and  came  to  the  head-waters  of  a  river,  which  with  a 
piirty  of  two  Indian  boys  and  a  half-breed  I  followed  for  some  time, 
und  came  to  a  tributary  which  we  crossed  on  Terror  Bridge,  a  very 
Axaky  structure  over  a  foaming  torrent.  About  15  miles  beyond  the 
liridge  we  came  on  a  very  large  camp  of  Indians  assembled  there  for 
tfie  double  purpose  of  catching  salmon,  which  abounded  in  the  river, 
and  of  trading  with  the  then  notable  chief  '  Shakes,*  who  ascended 
there  from  Foi*t  Highfield,  a  large  trading  station  of  the  Russians,  es- 
tablished at  the  mouth  of  the  river,  on  the  Paciflc  coast.  From  these 
Indians  I  was  glad  to  leani  that  the  name  of  the  river  was  *Stikcne.' 

"  I  gave  notes  to  some  of  the  Indians,  to  be  delivered  at  any  Hudson 
Hay  Co.  post,  relating  the  result  of  my  discovery  thus  far,  nnd  as  the 
olgect  of  my  trip  was  now  attained  I  wished  to  retrace  my  steps  without 
delay ;  but  it  was  with  no  little  difficulty  that  we  got  away  from  the 
i-amp  of  the  savages.  We  owed  our  safety  to  the  Nahany  chief,  and 
the  tribe  we  came  first  in  cimtact  with  in  the  morning.  This  discovery, 
which  made  no  small  noise  at  the  time,  led  in  a  great  measure  to  the 
Hudson  Bay  Co.  leasing  from  the  Russians  a  stretch  of  country  along 
the  coast,  for  purposes  of  trade." 

The  Hudson  Bay  Co.  first  established  Fort  Mnmford,  60  miles  up 
tlie  river  from  Fort  Wrangell,  at  the  supposed  Russian  boundary  line, 
and  Fort  Gletiora,  126  miles  up  river,  at  the  head  of  canoe  navigation. 
Wlien  the  miners  came  with  steamboats,  fire-arms,  and  blasting  powder, 
game  was  frightened  away,  and  the  Indians  found  more  lucrative  pur- 
suits than  hunting  and  trapping.  In  1878  the  company  abandoned  the 
river  posts,  the  mines  failed,  and  the  region  relapsed  into  a  wilderness. 

The  scenery  of  Stah-Keena,  the  Great  River,  will  revive  the  for- 
tunes of  the  region  when  increasing  tourist  travel  makes  it  better 
known.  Prof.  John  Muir,  who  canoc^  its  length  in  1879,  epitomized  its 
finest  reach  as  *' a  Yosemite  100  miles  long."  Three  hundred  living  gla- 


git' 


I. 


W  ^^ 


70 


THE   8TIKINE   RIVER. 


cier8  drain  directly  into  the  Stilcine,  and  Prof.  Muir  counted  100  from 
his  canoe.  The  river  is  very  shallow  at  the  mouth,  with  a  current 
running  6  miles  an  hour,  but  in  the  upper  canons  the  current  Is  ter- 
rific. Steamers  were  withdrawn  from  the  river  in  1883,  but  a  relic 
continued  to  navigate  until  1891,  although  canoe  travel  was  and  is  still 
more  satLofactory  to  those  who  can  give  a  fortnight  to  the  excursion. 
In  busy  times,  when  all  the  standing-room  was  taken  on  these  river- 
boats,  and  they  tied  to  the  banks  each  night  to  give  passengers  room 
to  sleep,  it  was  a  8  days'  trip  up  to  (ilenora  by  steam,  and  10  days  in 
canoe.  Returning,  the  steamers  made  the  160  miles  in  8  or  12  hours, 
the  machinery  reversed  much  of  the  time,  to  restrain  the  boat  from 
going  entirely  with  the  mad  current. 


> '  --n 


Itinerary  of  the  Stikine  River*         '<■ 

The  first  object  of  interest  is  the  Popoff^  or  Little  Olaeier,  10  miles 
above  Point  Rothsay.  At  the  Biff  Bcnd^  a  few  miles  above,  the  hkoot 
River  opens  a  valley  southward,  its  course  defined  by  the  sharp  needle 
peaks  of  the  Glacier  Range.  The  natives,  following  the  Iskoot  caiions 
for  60  miles,  reach  a  table-land  from  which  they  descend  the  Nass 
River  to  Fort  Simpson.  I^esidea  scenery  of  the  wildest  description, 
peakn,  precipices,  and  glaciers  that  defy  Zermatt  climbers,  the  Iskoot 
region  is  a  great  preserve  of  big  game.  Grizzly,  cinnamon,  and  black 
bears,  mountain  goat  and  mountain  sheep,  deer  and  elk,  roam  undis- 
turbed, gi'ouse  abound,  and  mosquitoes  surpass  in  numbers  and  vo- 
racity any  others  of  their  kind.  The  same  condition  as  to  game  and 
insects  exists  all  along  the  Stikine. 

The  Great,  or  Orlebar  Glacier,  20  miles  above  the  Little  Gla- 
cier, and  40  miles  from  Fort  Wrangel,  is  often  visited  in  chortered 
steamers,  when  mail  steamers  arc  delayed  at  the  latter  port  for  a 
whole  day,  and  offers  an  interesting  excursion.  The  glacier  descends 
through  a  mountain  gateway  less  than  a  mile  in  width,  and  spreads  out 
in  a  broad,  rounded,  fan  slope  measuring  8  miles  around  its  rim.  A 
terminal  moraine  half  a  mile  in  width  lies  between  it  and  the  river,  a 
place  of  sloughs  and  quicksands  cut  by  the  milk-white  Ice  Water 
River,  and  scores  of  streams  through  which  the  pilgrim  wades  to  the 
foot  of  ice-cliffs  rising  abruptly  600  and  700  ft.  The  glacier  slopes 
back  easily  and  disappears  in  fine  curves  behind  mountain  spurs.  Its 
surface  is  much  broken,  but  it  has  not  been  explored  nor  its  motion 
recorded.    Two  young  Russian  officers  once  came  down  from  Sitka  to 


THE   8TIKINE   RIVER. 


71 


;cr8  room 


explore  this  glacier  to  its  source,  but  they  never  returned  with  its 
soncts.  Old  miners  and  river  traders  say  that  it  has  shrunk  and  retreated 
imah  since  those  good  old  days  when  "  the  boys,"  with  their  bags  of 
tloiir  gold,  and  nuggets,  used  to  congregate  at  Buck's  Bar  (Choquette's) 
01)  the  opposite  bank,  and,  while  boiling  themselves  in  the  Hot  Springs 
batli!«,  contemplated  the  great  ice  stream  over  the  way.  A  smaller  gla- 
cier faces  the  Great  Glacier  on  the  Hot  Springs  side,  and  there  is  an 
Indian  tradition  to  the  effect  that  these  two  glaciers  were  once  united, 
and  the  river  ran  through  in  an  arched  tunnel.  To  find  out  whether  it 
led  out  to  the  sea,  the  Indians  determined  to  send  two  of  their  number 
through  the  tunnel,  and  with  fine  Indian  logic  they  chose  the  oldest 
members  of  their  tribe  to  make  the  perilous  voyage  into  the  ice  moun- 
tain, arguing  that  they  might  die  very  soon  anyhow.  The  venerable 
Indians  shot  the  tunnel,  and,  returning  with  the  great  news  of  a 
eioar  passage-way  to  the  sea,  were  held  in  the  highest  esteem  forever 
after. 

Near  a  bend  in  the  river  known  to  the  miners  as  the  DeviVa  Elboir^ 
tlie  Mud  or  Dirt  Glacier  pours  through  a  defile  and  spreads  along 
the  river  bank  like  a  high  terrace  for  3  miles.  Next,  the  Flood  Gla- 
cier desccndt'  from  a  hidden  neve.  Every  summer  something  gives  way 
in  the  glacial  fastness  and  a  flood  bursts  out  with  a  roar,  the  river 
rises  several  feet  and  races  with  a  swift  current,  while  the  unknown 
reservoir  empties  itself.  Caution  has  kept  miners  and  Indians  away, 
and  no  scientist  has  investigated  to  see  how  and  where  the  ice  spirits 
build  their  dam.  Beyond  it  is  the  dreaded  Little  Canon,  a  gorge  a 
half  mile  long,  narrowing  to  a  width  of  100  ft.,  where  ascending 
steamboats  struggle  for  nearly  an  hour  before  they  can  emerge  from 
the  frightful  defile.  Steamers  often  tic  up  for  days,  waiting  for  the 
furious  current  to  slacken.  Next  is  the  Kloochman^s  or  Woinan^s 
Cation,  where  the  noble  Stikine,  exhausted  by  paddling  or  tracking 
his  canoe  through  the  preceding  canon,  leaves  the  cures  of  its  naviga- 
tion entirely  to  his  wife.  Here  he  crosses  the  backbone  of  the  Main 
or  Sawback  Range,  and  here  arc  summer  camps  by  that  fine  salmon 
stream  the  Clearwater.  The  Big  Ripple,  or  the  Stikine  Rapids,  offer 
the  last  difficulties  for  canoemen,  and  then  the  country  opens  out  into 
more  level  stretches,  and  a  dry  and  wholly  different  climate  causes 
ShukcK^H,  Carpenter^ s,  and  Fiddlir^s  Bars,  where  men  picked  up  for- 
tunes 30  years  ago,  to  scorch  in  dry  summer  heats. 

At  Glenora^  640  ft.  above  the  sea,  steamers  discharge  their  cargoes 


72 


TIIK   8TIKINE   RIVKR. 


r 


;'      (■ 


N^  i>  ;  ' 


and  Htart  on  the  wild  Hwccp  duwn  the  river.  Canoes  can  ascend  an- 
other 12  miles  to  the  mouth  of  Tclcyraph  Crtrk,  where  the  survoyors 
decided  tltat  the  Western  Union  wires  sliould  cross,  and  wliere  tlic 
Oreat  Cuiioii  of  the  Stilvine  liej»ins,  a  rocky  i^orpe  50  miles  long  tliu! 
no  craft  can  traverse,  but  which  in  winter  ofl'ers  a  level  ice  higliwiiy 
and  a  snow-ahoer's  short  cut  towards  Cassiar. 

MININU  RE(J10NH  OF  THE  STIKINK. 

n.  B.  Co.  agents  disclaim  any  previous  knowledge  of  the  existence 
of  gold  along  the  Stiliine  River,  and  deny  any  exchange  of  gold  dust 
ounce  for  ounce  for  lead  bullets  us  with  the  natives  on  the  Fraser.  In 
1861,  Pierre  Cho(iuette  and  Carpenter  his  partner  discovered  gold  ou  a 
barncar  Glcnora.  Camps  quickly  dotted  the  river's  length,  and  in  l87;i 
richer  fields  were  (liscovered  in  the  Cassiar  regions,  at  the  head-waters 
of  the  river,  by  Thibert  and  McCulloch,  two  trappers  who  had  muiie 
their  way  overland  from  Minnesota.  Ten  thousand  miners  reaclie'l 
the  diggings  in  1874,  and  the  yield  was  estimated  at  .S1,<»()0,0()0.  Tlic 
new  camps  were  300  miles  from  Fort  Wrangell  and  150  miles  from 
Glenora.  The  centre  of  trade  was  at  Laketown,  on  Dease  Creek,  near 
Dease  Lake.  Tlie  Omineca  region  at  the  head  of  Peace  and  Skeena 
Rivers  was  deserted.  Four  ocean  steamers  ran  regularlv  from  Victoria, 
transferring  to  Six  River  steamers  at  Fort  Wrangell.  Freiglits 
from  the  latter  place  to  tlie  mines  ranged  from  .*i>20  to  .$80  and  .'?lt>(i 
per  ton,  the  last  half  of  the  transit  being  by  pack-mules  or  on  men's 
backs  over  the  rougher*!  mountain  trails  known.  While  the  mines 
were  paying,  Fort  W^rangell  was  the  winter  resort  of  the  miners,  ami 
the  liveliest  as  well  as  the  most  important  town  in  Alaska.  Travel 
turned  inland  in  February,  miners  travelling  by  snow-slioes  and  witli 
hand-sleds  on  the  ice  until  well  into  March.  Active  work  began  in 
May,  and  the  freezing  of  the  sluices  in  September  closed  the  season. 
When  the  placers  were  exhausted  and  machitiery  was  needed  to  w<)rk 
the  quartz  claims,  the  miners  left.  Chinese  for  a  long  time  worked 
abandoned  river  bars  and  Cassiiir  placers. 

The  returns  of  the  Cassiar  mining  district,  os  given  by  the  British 
Columbian  Minister  of  Mines,  show  the  quick  decrease  in  the  bullion 
vield : 


YEAR. 

Number  of 
minen. 

2,000 

800 

^.-iOO 

1,200 

"  1,866 

Gn}d  product. 

YEAR. 

Nuinbvr  of 
niliun, 

'  i"666 

Gold  produit. 

1874 

81,000,000 
8:^0,000 
5.50,474 
499.830 
519,7-20 
405,200 
25)7,850 
198,900 

1882 

$182,«KI 

1875 

1  188.3 

119,000 

1870 

1884 

1885 

1S80 

\o\,m\ 

1877 

60,600 

1878 

63,010 

1879 

1887 

60,4a") 

1880 

! 

1881 

$4,88(i,0(i!» 

SUMNER  STRAIT  TO   PRINCE   FREDERICK   SOUND.      73 

THE  INTERNATIONAL  BOUNDARY  LINE  ON  THE  8TIKINE. 

The  leasing  of  the  Thirty-mile  Strip  to  the  II.  B.  Co.  did  away  with 
tlic  necessity  of  precisely  marking  the  boundiiry  line  on  the  ri'/er,  and 
tlu<  Russians  felt  no  concern  in  the  matter  until  the  gold  discoveries  of 
iKCiii.  It  was  provided  in  the  Russian  American  Company's  lease  that 
all  mineral  lands  should  belong  to  the  crown  ;  and  the  Czar,  who  had 
boon  brooding  much  over  the  mineral  possibilities  of  his  American 
province,  ordered  Admiral  Popoflf  to  send  a  corvette  from  Japan  to  see 
if  the  British  miners  were  on  Russian  soil.  Prof.  William  P.  Blake, 
the  geologist,  accompanied  Captain  Bassarguinc  on  the  Rynda  from 
Iliikndate  in  186:i,  and  his  report,  with  the  Russian  officers*  maps,  were 
tlio  first  authentic  geograptiic  and  geologic  information.  Since  their 
survey  five  different  places  have  been  designated  as  the  boundary, 
ranging  from  the  Little  Glacier  to  the  crossing  of  the  Sawback  Range. 
The  report  of  the  Dawson-McConnell  survey  of  the  river  is  included  in 
the  Annual  Report  of  the  Geological  Survey  of  Canada  for  1887.  The 
report  of  the  Special  U.  S.  Treasury  Agent,  W.  G.  Morris,  in  Extra 
Senate  Document  No.  69 — Forty-fifth  Congress,  third  session,  gives  a 
full  account  of  the  attempts  to  determine  some  limit  during  Cassiar 
(liiys  and  the  necessity  for  some  settlement  of  the  question. 


From  Sumner  Strait  to  Prince  Frederick  Sonnd  via 
Wrangell  ITarrows. 

Sumner  Strait  extends  80  miles  from  the  mouth  of  the  Stikine 
River  to  the  open  ocean,  and  on  its  N.  shore,  19  miles  from  Fort 
Wrangell,  a  narrow  river  of  the  sea  leads  to  Prince  Frederick 
Sonnd,  the  next  great  transverse  channel  in  the  archipelago.  Wran- 
gell Strait,  more  commonly  known  as  Wrangell  Narrows,  is  19 
miles  in  length,  at  times  not  100  yards  in  width,  and  in  the  course  of 
its  windings  presents  features  that  entitle  it  to  being  one  of  the  most 
famous  landscape  channels  on  the  regular  tourist  route.  Vancouver's 
men  entered  its  mouth,  but,  believing  it  another  inlet,  turned  back.  It 
was  long  considered  navigable  only  for  light-draught  vessels  at  the 
highest  tide,  and  Government  transports  went  outside  from  Fort 
Wrangell  to  Sitka,  until  the  perils  of  Cape  Ommanei^y  the  fogs, 
storms,  and  currents  of  the  ocean  induced  Captain  R.  H.  Meade  to  sur- 
vcy  a  way  for  the      ,  S.  S.  Saginaw,  in  1869.     Captain  J.  B.  Coghlan, 

U.  S.  N.,  voluntarily  surveyed  and  buoyed  the  channel  in  1884,  and 
6 


w 


» '. . '  ' 


ri 

hi 

I 

,f  ■ 


*iir. 


■->  , 


W'--: 


It:' 


74      SUMNER  STRAIT  TO   PRINCE   FREDEUICK    SOUND. 

later  the  Coast  Survey  made  soundingfl.  The  tender  of  the  Thirtooiitli 
Lighthouse  District,  which  includes  ull  of  the  United  States  .chores  ln-- 
twecn  the  Columbia  River  and  Cape  Spencer,  inspects  and  replaces  the 
buoys  each  summer. 

The  tourist  should  not  miss  any  part  of  this  scenic  passage ;  tSio 
near  shores,  the  forested  heights,  and  the  magnificent  range  of  peak > 
around  the  Stikines  delta,  composing  some  of  the  noblest  landscapes  Ik* 
will  see.  The  sunset  effects  in  the  broad  channels  at  either  end  are 
renowned,  and  the  possessor  of  a  Claude  Lorraine  glass  is  the  most 
fortunate  of  tourists.  He  who  has  seen  the  sunrise  lights  in  the  nar- 
rows has  seen  the  best  of  the  marvellous  atmospheric  effects  and  colour 
displays  the  matchless  coast  can  offer.  It  is  a  place  of  resort  for 
eagles,  whose  nests  may  be  seen  in  many  tree-tops,  and  is  a  nursery 
for  young  gulls  who  float  like  myriad  tufts  of  down  in  the  still  reaches. 
A  hedge  of  living  green  rises  from  the  water's  edge,  every  spruce  twig 
festooned  with  paler  green  mosses.  At  low  tide,  broad  bands  ot 
russet  sea-weed  {algce)  frame  the  islets  and  border  the  shores,  and 
fronds,  stems,  and  orange  heads  of  the  giant  kelp  float  in  the  intensely 
green  waters.  The  tides  rushing  in  from  either  end  meet  off  Fin(/<  r 
Point,  whose  two  red  spar  buoys  are  prominent  in  the  exciting  navijra- 
tion.  The  tide-fall  varies  from  14  to  23  ft.,  and  salmon,  entering  with 
the  tide,  turn  aside  at  the  red  spar  buoys,  clear  ah  islet,  manoeuvre  to 
the  foot  of  a  fall,  leap  its  8  ft.  at  high  tide,  and  swim  to  a  mountain 
lake. 

Along  Prince  Frederick  Sound* 

Prince  Frederick  Sound  won  its  name  from  the  meeting  of 
Whidbey  and  Johnstone  on  its  shores  on  the  birthday  of  II.  R.  II. 
Frederick,  Duke  of  York,  in  1794.  Vancouver  lay  at  anchor  at  the 
time  in  Port  Coticlusion,  just  within  Cape  Ommaney,  while  these  two 
lieutenants  made  their  final  search  for  some  opening  on  the  mainland 
coast.  Landing  on  the  Kupreanoff  shore,  they  took  formal  possession 
of  the  country,  and  dealt  out  double  grog  to  their  men.  This  endotl 
the  actual  exploration,  the  fruitless  search  for  the  mythical  straits  of 
Anian,  and  ^'  with  no  small  portion  of  facetious  mirth"  they  remem- 
bered that  they  had  sailed  from  England  on  the  1st  day  of  April  to 
find  the  Northwest  Passage.  These  lieutenants  made  plain  to  their 
chief  the  "  uncommonly  awftil "  and  "  horribly  magnifcent "  character 
of  the  scenery  along  the  Prince  Frederick  shore ;  and  Vancouver  began 
the  lavish  use  of  adjectives  which  is  in  vogue  in  Alaskan  narratives  to-day. 


ND. 

Thirteenth 

.ihorcrt  ])!'■ 

?placc8  till' 

ssftge;  tlie 
;e  of  peaks 
ilscapes  lie 
ler  end  arc 
)  the  moHt 
fi  the  iiar- 
and  colour 
resort  for 

a  nurpery 
II  reaches. 
)ruce  twig 
bands  of 
lores,  and 

intensely 
aflf  Mtiffi  r 
ig  navifra- 
'ring  witli 
loeuvre  to 
mountain 


eating  of 
H.  R.  II. 

or  at  the 
hese  two 
mainlanti 

lossessioii 
bis  ended 
straits  of 
y  remeni- 
April  to 
to  their 
jharactor 
er  began 
D8  to-dav. 


m 


SUMNKR    STRAIT    TO    PRINf'P:    KRKDKRKK    S(>rNl>.       tH 


The  DeviPn  Thumb,  a  dark  Kpirc  risinj;  l.twto  ft.  I'rnin  tlio  rim  u{ 

111)  iimphitheatre  7,0m>  ft.  ahovt'  the  soa,  was  nniiu'il  l»y  raptuiii  Mt-atle 

licciiusc  of  ltd  rescMiiblance  to  a  Hiinilar  tliuinl)  or  inotiolith  on  the 

(Iretnlaiid  coast.     This  ^reat  himhiiark  nhowH  fioiii  the  ii|>|M'i-  hall'  of 

WrmtytU  XarrowM,  and  loo'ns  from  every  <|iinrtt>r  lis  the  ship  lioxes  the 

coiiipass  in  it8  varieil  course.     It  is  a  Kn^'cr-ltoiird  to  tlic  toiiiist's  first 

Al'ishiii  (/fader  which  is  a  prominent  feature  in  the  lon^'  panonimn  iilonj; 

tlu'  N'.  wall  of  Prinee  Frederick  Sound.     This  nhicier,  named  Puth  rson 

for  the  late  Carlisle  Patterson,  chief  of  the  Coast  Survey,  pours  over 

ami  down  a  ^reat  ^lope,  showing  a  l)eautifully  Itliie  and  rumpled  front. 

Ill  Vancouver's  time  it  dropped  iceher^rs  from  the  clifTs  to  the  water. 

.\  fine  waterfall  decorates  the  front  oi  /lorn  C/ijf's  at  the  loot  of  tin- 

glacier. 

The  Thunder  Bay  C. lacier. 

The  first  tide-water  glacier  on  the  coast,  latitiule  r»»>°  Hn  .V.,  is 
hiilden  at  the  end  of  Ilntli  ♦  {ThntKhr)  liin/,  an.l  sends  out  the  myriad 
lierjis  that  sparkle  along  the  sound.  It  is  picturesipu'ly  set,  deliouch- 
iii;,'  grandly  from  a  steep  cation  cutting  at  a  right  angle  from  the  head  (tf 
the  hay,  and  the  walls  are  forested  clo.^e  to  the  glacier's  edge.  The  llufli 
is  a  pure  white,  deeply  crevassed  ice-stream  half  a  mile  in  width  ;  and 
the  it'c-cliPTs,  rising  100  and  L'OO  ft.  above  the  waters,  are  always  top- 
pling and  crashing  with  the  glacier's  ra|Md  advance.  The  hay  is  seldom 
navigable,  because  of  the  ice-floes,  which  are  either  packed  solidly  or 
whiiling  with  the  tides.  San  Francisco  ice-ships  loaded  from  this  gla- 
cier as  early  as  1853,  and  halibut  schooners  oft<'n  put  into  the  sound 
for  ice  to  pack  their  catch.  Lying  at  5<>°  iM\'  X.  latitude,  it  shows  all 
the  features  of  a  Greenland  glacier,  but  its  wonders  were  unheralded 
until  John  Muir  visited  it  in  18T9.  The  Stikiiies  elaim  to  remember  a 
time  when  the  glacier  reached  nearly  to  the  mouth  of  the  bay,  and  Van- 
loaver's  description  supports  them. 

GLACI.\L  TIIEOUY  OK  THE  N.\T1VKS. 

The  Stikines,  hearing  the  mysterious  roars  and  crashes  from  within 
tills  l)ay,  believed  it  the  home  of  the  Thunder  Hird,  and  llutli's  rough 
syllaldes  stand  for  that  mythical  creature,  the  flapping  of  whose  wings 
muses  the  rolling  noises  heard.  All  Tlingits  believe  that  in  the  begin- 
ning the  mountains  were  living  creatures,  grandly  embodied  spirits, 
whom  they  long  worshipped.     The  glaciers  are  the  children  of  the 


m^. 


*  Since  named  by  the  Coast  Survey  Le  Conte  Bay  and  Lc  Conte 
(jlacicr. 


7W 


70      8UMNKK   HTRAIT  TO    PRINCK    FUKDERICK   ftoUNI). 


^I^t 


^^'i 


mountaiiiH,  and  thoHc  pHruiitrt  hold  tliciii  in  their  arinH,  dip  their  feet  in 
the  Heu,  cover  tliein  with  det  p  biiowh  in  tlie  winter,  utid  scatter  earth 
and  rocl<H  over  tliein  to  ward  ofT  tlie  Hiininter  sun.  Sitth  is  tlicir  p>ti 
cral  name  for  ice,  and  its  wiiispered  sildliintH  su^gcBt  the  Tlin};its' 
horror  of  cold,  even  tlfir  dull  inia^inationn  conceiving  a  hell  of  ice — u 
place  of  everla8tinf;  cold  as  the  future  state  of  those  buried  in  the 
frround  rather  than  cremated.  SiNh  too  y<hk  is  their  ice  spirit,  an 
invisible  power  of  evil,  whose  chill  breath  is  death,  who  nuuiife>tH 
himself  in  the  keen,  peculiar  wind  blowing;  over  glacial  reaches;  whose 
voice  is  heard  in  the  an^^ry  roar  of  falling  bergs,  and  in  the  hiss,  tlio 
crackle,  and  tinkle  of  singin<;  ice-floes.  He  hurls  down  bergs  in  his 
wrath,  lie  tosses  them  to  and  fro,  crushes  canoes,  and  washes  the  laud 
with  great  waves.  When  the  Ico-wind  dies  away  and  the  glacier's  from 
is  still,  yiffh  too  Ythk  sleeps  or  roams  under  ice  labyrinths,  planniii;; 
further  destruction.  The  natives  spcuk  in  whispers,  for  fear  of  rousinj; 
or  otTending  this  evil  one,  and  refrain  from  striking  his  subjects — thf 
icebergs — with  their  canoe-paddles.  When  they  must  make  a  journcv 
across  a  glacier,  they  implore  the  mercy  of  yitth  too  Yi-hk  with  muili 
big  medicine  and  incantations,  speak  .softly,  tread  lightly,  and  ueitlui- 
detilen  or  offend  it  with  crumb  or  odour  of  their  fc  od.  The  hair-seal.s 
are  the  children  of  the  glacier,  and  proof  against  all  this  magic.  Thcv 
may  ride  on  the  ice-cakes  with  impunity,  and  in  under  the  IhttWs  and 
Klnnnnn  GntUi's  (Taku's)  front  the  man-faced  seals  live,  terrible 
creatures  whose  spell  can  only  be  broken  by  one's  pouring  some  fre^h 
water  into  the  sea. 

All  the  flats  between  Hutii  and  Pohit  llif/hjidd  are  visited  by  flocks 
of  ducks  that  offer  sportsmen  unrivalled  opportunities. 

The  Bdh'd  Ghtcier  shows  its  upper  slopes  just  west  of  the  Patterson 
Glacier,  but  the  finer  view  of  its  full  front  and  long  reaches  is  obtained 
from  Thomas  Bay,  A'hich,  commanding  views  of  other  glaciers,  of 
waterfalls  and  sple.did  cliffs,  has  been  much  extolled  as  the  scenic  gem 
of  the  sound. 

Cape  Faushawe  is  the  great  landmark  of  the  sound,  a  storni- 
king  and  cloud-compeller  that,  fronting  to  southwestward,  gathers  to  it 
all  the  storms  that  drift  and  draught  in  from  Cape  Ommaney.  Canoes 
are  storm-bound  for  weeks,  and  ships  labour  heavily  to  round  this 
promontory  when  the  great  winter  winds  blow ;  but  in  summer  the 
waters  ripple  away  to  clear  emerald  and  pearly  reaches.  The  sound  is  a 
favourite  breeding-ground  of  whales,  and  in  these  safe,  deep  waters  one 
may  see  the  leviathans  frisking,  and  infant  spouters  taking  their  first 
lessons.  They  were  once  snapped  in  the  act  by  Lieutenant  Niblack, 
whose  ready  camera  had  already  caught  the  flying  eagle  and  the  leaping,' 
salmon. 


.)■ 


i^  ■■ 


I* 


SUMN'KR   STRAIT   To    FRINCK    FRKDKKK'K    HorXD.      77 

Kiipreanoflf  niid  Kuiu  IiilniidN,  Thr  Land  of  Knked. 

liOHs  is  known  of  Kaprrnnoflniid  Kuiu  Islnudn — t)ii>  liUiid  of 
Kakcf* — than   of  the   othi-rs  (»f  tlic  nn'liiju'hino,  tu'causo  of  thi*   lia<i 
iiiuiK-  of  thiit  tribe  inhiihitiii^r   tliein.      The    KaliCH    fri<;htene(l    Van 
riHiver's  men  by  their  manners,  and  are   '.reade<l  bv  other  Tliiigits,  who 
siiy  that  thoy  are  outeast  Sitknns. 

They  were  the  most  dreaded  of  all  the  "  northern  Indians  "  who 
ilfviistated  the  lower  eoast.  In  iHofi  several  eanm'-loads  were  driven 
frmii  i>laee  to  plaee  in  I*iinet  Sound,  and  orden'd  to  };o  home  by  the 
I'.  S.  S.  .\fti.tti<ichuMftfM,  which  served  a  final  notice  t«»  those  encamped 
on  tlie  spit  opposite  Port  (Jamble's  mills,  an<l  tlwn  opened  lire.  The 
Kal«'  chief  and  several  of  his  men  were  killed,  and  th(  .1/.  i^husettn 
took  the  Kakcs  as  far  as  Victoria,  and  once  more  told  theii  >  pj. 
Two  years  later  a  war  party  of  nearly  a  thousand  arrived  at  the  •<(»niid, 
and,  landing  on  Whidbey  Island  in  theni<;ht,  called  out  and  'hot  ('oIoik-I 
Kin,  collector  of  customs.  They  mounted  his  head  and  'i.  se  ot  iliree 
other  whites  on  poles  in  their  canoes,  a  id  paddled  away  in  triumph. 
No  retaliation  wa^-  nMcinpted,  but  some  years  later  Captain  Dod,  .f  the 
lUiiver,  visited  a  Kake  villaj?e,  and  bought  (.'olonel  Kb\'s  sculp  for  six 
lilankets  s'\  handkerchiefs,  and  two  bottles  of  rum.  In  1. ■*()('»  the 
Kukes  seized  the  schinmer  Royal  C/nirllr,  anchored  near  a  Kuiv  village, 
iniu'dered  the  crew,  and  scuttled  the  ship.  The  findinj;  of  a  few  relics 
(lining  the  Kake  war  of  l(St)l»  cleared  the  mvsterv  of  that  craft.  They 
diviiled  honours  with  the  Ilaidas  and  Stikines  in  piracy  and  murder 
down  the  coast,  but  were  looked  down  upon  by  both  thos«'  superior 
people.  The  famous  "Kake War"  of  IM9  arose  from  the  Kakes 
inuiderinp  two  Sitka  traders  in  revenge  for  the  shooting  <»f  a  Kake  by 
a  Sitka  sentry.  Captain  Meade  took  tlie  U,  S.  S,  Stif/imiw  and  destroyetl 
three  villages  by  fire  and  shell. 

These  three  villages  were  in  bays  on  the  northern  end  of  the  island, 
and  it  was  many  years  before  the  Kakes  attemptei!  to  rebuild  them. 
They  roamed  the  archipelago  as  waifs  and  free-lances,  creating  trouble 
wlicrever  they  drew  up  their  canoes.  Their  visits  were  dreaded  by 
natives  and  whites.  A  few  of  the  better-disposed  Kakes  were  toler- 
ated at  Killisnoo  for  a  time,  but  their  reinitation  etrectually  kept 
fishermen  and  mineral  prospectors  away  from  their  shores.  The  nnli- 
taiy  census  of  1809  estinuited  the  inhabitants  (tf  Kuiu  and  Kupreanoff 
Islands  at  2,000,  Petroff's  census  of  isso  nuiid»«'rs  them  nos.  The 
enumeration  of  1890  gives  but  tiSO  Kakes,  and  notes  but  the  two  vil- 
lajres  of  Port  Ellis  ou  Kuiu  and  Port  linrrie  on  Kupreanoff  Island. 
In  1891  a  Government  school  was  established  at  H(nnUp}ii  iJai/ at  the 
north  entrance  of  Keku  Strait,  and  in  Jatiuary,  1892,  the  teacher,  C, 
11.  Kdwards,  was  killed  by  two  men  who  came  in  a  small  sloop,  as  lie 
liclieved,  to  sell  liquor  to  the  Kakes, 

Ivehi  StraU,  connecting  Sumner  Strait  and  Prince  Frederick  Sound, 
Has  long  suspected  to  afford  a  safer  and  more  direct  ship-channel  than 
W  range!  Narrows,  and  more  scenic  beauty  is  claimed  for  it. 


Jmi^ 


If  I  ,'l 


78 


CAPE   FANSIIAWE   TO   TAKU    INLET. 


Kuiu  Island  is  the  most  extraordinary  arrangement  of  forest 
land  t'v«'r  scattered  upon  Alaskan  waters.  Map-makers'  favourite  hut 
unpleasant  comparison  is  to  amass  of  entrails  surrounded  by  flies.  Tlie 
island  is  over  CO  miles  in  length  and  30  miles  across  at  its  widest  point, 
btit  it  is  such  a  mass  of  peninsulas,  isthmuses,  and  inlets  fringed  witli 
tiny  islets  that  the  ordinary  statement  of  dimensions  cannot  describe 
it.  Its  shores  are  least  surveyed  of  any  in  the  archipelago,  and  mail 
steamers  have  only  touched  at  the  cannery  at  Vancouver's  Foint  EUix 
in  the  Btiti  <>f  I'illnrs.  Dense  groves  of  yellow  cedar  may  be  seen  on 
its  shores,  and  in  both  1874  and  ISVC  the  Alaska  Lumber  and  Ship-buiM- 
ing  (.'ompany  prayed  Congress  to  grant  it  or  to  sell  it  100,000  acres  of 
timber  lands  on  Kuiu  hland,  binding  itself  to  establish  mills  and 
yards,  and  build  a  vessel  of  ],2(»0  tons  burden  within  two  years.  The 
fianchi.se  was  refused,  and  Kuiu  remains  a  wilderness. 


From  Gape  Fanshawe  to  Taku  Inlet,  Shucks  and  Sum 

Dum  Bays. 

Mi.  Wiiulhiim,  2,500  feet  in  height  at  the  N.  entrance  of  Windham 
litii/^  marks  the  beginning  of  Stephcnii's  PuKsoffe,  25  miles  above  C'uji' 
Famfudcc.  The  mining-camp  of  Shucks,  the  Shuk'hte  of  the  Tlingits, 
lies  at  the  end  of  Windham  Bay,  8  miles  from  the  entrance. 

Gold  was  discovered  at  this  place  in  18*75,  and  in  the  centennial 
year  ;^0  miners  were  at  work.  In  1879  Professor  John  Muir  visited 
the  camp,  and  the  miners  put  him  on  the  trail  of  more  glacial  game 
than  he  had  anticipated.  After  the  Juneau  discoveries  Shucks  was 
abandoned  for  ten  years,  when  a  company  took  up  the  basin  and  began 
hydraidic  mining  on  a  large  scale.  Their  pipe-line  and  flume  lead  to 
the  Unch'  Sam  Basin,  1,0<)(>  ft.  above  the  bay,  whence  it  is  a  short 
climl)  to  the  crest  of  the  divide  between  Shucks  Bay  and  the  southern 
arm  of  Suui  Dum  Bay.  The  higher  meadows,  thickly  carpeted  witli 
dwarf  laurel,  violets,  daisies,  anemones,  buttercups,  lilies  of  the  valley, 
and  that  royal  Howei-,  the  black  Kamchatka  lily  (Fritillaria  Kamschut- 
km-siis),  are  rich  botanical  ground,  and  to  the  sportsman  the  region  pre 
sents  the  greatest  attractions.  These  are  the  chosen  pastures  of  tlif 
mo»Mitain-goat ;  and  the  mountain-sheep,  keeping  usually  to  the  second 
and  interior  ranges,  comes  to  the  coast  between  Cape  Fanshawe  an<\ 
Taku. 

Shucks  is  the  accepted  site  of  the  "  Lost  Rocker,"  the  standard 
romance  necessary  to  each  mining  region.  In  that  dim  time  of  mys- 
tery and  fable  "  before  the  transfer,"  two  Stikine  miners  found  pockets 
of  nuggets  in  a  lone  bay  near  Cape  Fanshawe.  They  were  attacked  by 
Indians,  and  one  miner  killed.  The  other,  left  for  dead  beside  his 
rocker,  managed  to  crawl  and  paddle  away  to  a  settlement,  and  died 


CAPE    FANSIIAWE   TO   TAKU    INLET. 

while  describing  the  place  where  the  rocker  full  of  nupfrets  was  left. 
For  a  quarter  of  a  century  prospectors  have  searched  for  the  phantom 
ntrker.  Jo  Juneau  admits  of  having  thought  of  it,  and  the  tradition, 
tloar  to  the  Alaskan  heart,  has  been  dramatized,  and  every  season 
"  The  Lost  Rocker  "  draws  crowds  to  the  Juneau  Opera-llouse. 

Sum  Dam,  the  bay  whose  long-drawn  Tlingit  syllables  express 
in  sound  and  meaning  the  noise  of  falling  ice,  was  named  Ilolkham 
Bdif  by  Vancouver.  The  broad  bay  is  seen  from  the  steamer  route 
with  the  great  JS'um  Dum  Glacier  sloping  down  from  the  snow-fields 
bi-yond  Mt.  Harrison.  It  divides  into  the  Endicott  Arm,  extending 
25  miles  in  a  southeasterly  direction,  and  the  Trticif  Arm  cutting  N. 
and  then  E.,  some  22  miles  altogether.  It  is  a  great  glacial  trough, 
soundings  giving  no  bottom  at  200  fathoms;  is  set  with  '^innacle 
rocks  and  reefs,  and  contains  but  one  anchorage.  Strong  tidal  currents 
iiiid  floating  ice  further  oppose  navigation. 

No  large  steamers  enter  the  bay,  and  Juneau  launches  proceed  with 
I'xtreme  caution.  There  are  three  small  tide-water  glaciers  in  inlets  of 
Endicott  Arm.  One  of  these  canons  is  known  as  Ford's  Terror,  in 
lionour  of  the  draughtsman  of  the  Patfcrsoit,  wlut  rowed  in  at  slack 
water  to  look  for  ducks.  The  tide  turned  with  a  roar,  and  the  5-miIe 
canon,  less  than  100  yards  wide  in  places,  was  a  stretch  of  rapids  and 
wliirlpools  in  which  small  bergs  from  the  glacier  raced  and  ground  to- 
gether. The  sportsman  was  a  prisoner  for  six  hours,  when  he  was 
able  to  make  his  escape  with  the  last  of  the  ebb-tide.  There  are 
many  such  reversible  cataracts  within  the  bay,  and  gloomy  canons 
that  only  need  their  Hugo,  their  Verne,  and  their  Dor6  to  immortalize 
them. 

The  most  remarkable  glacial  exploit  on  this  coast  was  that  of  Cap- 
tain J.  VV.  White,  V.  S.  K.  M.,  who  took  the  Wai/nxda  into  the  bay 
while  on  an  exploring  cruise  in  18»)8.  Seeing  a  great  arched  opening 
in  the  face  of  one  tide-water  glacier,  he  steered  his  gig  into  a  vast  blue 
iri'otto,  and  was  rowed  loO  ft.  down  a  crvstalline  corridor.  The  colouring 
of  roof  and  walls  and  water  was  miuvelloiis,  the  air  was  pure,  palpitant 
sapphire,  and  in  th.e  shadowy  indigo  ah'ove  at  the  end  the  boatmen 
poured  out  libations  to  the  ice  spirits.  They  emerged  safely,  unsuspect- 
ing the  perils  they  had  braved. 

The  finest  scenery  of  all  is  reported  in  Tracy  Arm,  and  the  camp 
la  Roarhiff  Inlet  was  visited  by  Prof.  John  Muir  in  1879.  He  found 
two  splendid  tide-water  glaciers  in  that  magnificent  fiord,  one  a  mile 
and  the  other  a  half  mile  wide,  and  common  Swiss  or  Alpine  glaciers 
fronting  on  terminal  moraines  filled  every  ravine. 

The  Sum  Dum  mining  camp  was  deserted  for  a  decade  after  Ju- 
neau's discoveries,  but  recently  the  claims  have  been  relocated,  and  r 
'|>iartz-mill  will  do  its  feeble  grinding  beside  the  primeval  mills  of  the 

f-'Otls. 


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i 


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80 


CAPE   FANSIIAWE   TO  TAKU   INLET. 


Port  Srwttishnm  gives  promise  of  importance,  wlien  its  ledges  of 
gold  and  siliTcr  are  worked;  and  prospectors  report  the  Sped  River 
canons  at  the  head  of  the  bay  as  rivalling  any  others  in  point  of 
scenery. 

In  Taku  Harbour,  or  Locality  Inlet,  as  Sir  (Jeorgc  Simpson  named 
it,  the  remains  of  the  old  H.  H.  Co.'s  Furf  Durham  may  be  seen.  The 
Takus  drove  the  traders  away  at  the  end  of  three  years,  and  the  com- 
pany secured  their  furs  by  annual  visits  of  their  steamers.  The  Takus 
several  times  seized  these  ships  and  looted  them,  and  were  much 
dreaded  by  all  the  whites.  Most  mercenary  of  all  Tlinjrits  and  sharp- 
est of  bargainers,  the  Takus  are  called  "the  Alaska  Jews,"  and  in  view 
of  the  financial  advantages  resulting  did  not  oppose  the  coming  of 
miners.  They  were  never  a  totem-pole  people  ;  their  villages  are  un- 
interesting, and  they  have  too  quickly  assumed  the  outer  habits  of  the 
whites.  They  were  estimated  as  numbering  500  in  180^  but  in  1880 
only  269  Takus  were  counted;  and  in  1890  they  had  fallen  to  214, 
with  their  largest  village  at  Juneau. 

Taku  Mountain,  2,000  ft.  high,  a  most  symmetrical  and  densely 
forested  cone,  and  Grand  Island,  1,500  ft.  in  height,  are  the  two  most 
conspicuous  landmarks.  Above  them  is  the  Tokv.  Open,  a  water  cross- 
roads, where  Stephens's  Passage,  Taku  Inlet,  and  Gastineau  Chan- 
nel come  together — a  broad  and  treacherous  reach  where  canoes  are 
threatened  by  winds  from  the  four  quarters.  Taku  Inlet  is  the  cradle 
of  squalls,  and  Taku  Open  theii  playground.  In  winter,  fierce  willa- 
waws  or  "woolics"  sweep  from  the  heights,  beat  the  waters  to  foam, 
and  driv(»  the  spray  in  dense,  blinding  i-heets ;  but  in  summer  it  smiles 
and  ripples  in  perfect  peace,  sparkles  with  little  icebergs,  and  is  u 
point  of  macnificent  views. 

Taku  Inlet  and  the  Taku  Glaciers. 

Taku  Inlet  extends  18  miles  in  a  N.  E.  direction  from  Stephens's 
Passage,  widening  to  a  basin  where  the  Taku  River,  a  tide-water,  and 
an  Alpine  glacier  discharge  their  floods. 

It  is  one  of  the  show  places  on  the  Alaska  coast,  and  is  regularly 
visited  by  excursion  steamers.  The  Taku  Glacier  was  christened  the 
Schnlze  Glacier  in  1883,  in  honour  of  Paul  Schulze,  of  Tacoma,  and  in 
1891  was  renamed  the  Foster  Glacier,  in  honour  of  the  then  Secretary 
of  the  Treasury ;  but  locally  to  geologists,  tourists,  and  navigators  it 
remains  the  Taku.      The  native  name  is  Sitth  Klunu   Gntta^  "  the 


CAPE   FANSHAWE   TO   TAKU    INLET. 


81 


spirits'  home."  It  is  Pitth  too  Yclik'?*,  the  Ico  spirit's,  very  palace  of 
delight,  and  the  fabled  nmn-faecd  seals  with  their  human  hands  live 
and  frolic  in  its  eloar  blue  grottoes  and  crystal  dells.  The  ice-streara, 
ii  mile  in  width,  tills  its  canons  from  wall  to  wall,  and  its  squarely 
broken  front  rises  from  100  to  200  ft.  above  the  water.  It  is  one  of 
the  purest  and  cleanest  glaciers,  without  medial  or  apparent  lateral 
moraines,  and  deeply  fissured  and  crevassed  for  the  5  miles  of  its 
(.ourse  which  is  visible  from  the  water.  Because  of  its  purity,  ships 
prefer  to  fill  their  ice-boxes  in  this  basin,  and  the  process  of  lassoing 
t!ie  icebergs  and  hoisting  them  on  board  is  an  interesting  feature  in 
sliip  life. 

On  the  north  shore  of  tlie  inlet  there  is  a  large  glacier  of  the  Swiss 
type,  two  ice-streams  joining  and  sweeping  in  a  broad  fan  slope  to  a 
terminal  moraine  a  mile  in  width.  A  forest  has  grown  upon  the  west- 
ern edge  of  the  moraine,  and  the  sandy  level  is  cut  by  many  water- 
courses and  covered  with  beds  of  crimson  epilobiuro.  A  landing  is 
sometimes  made,  and  tourists  are  given  opportunity  to  visit  thia  glacier, 
which  the  natives  call  iSitfh  Kadisrhle,  the  Spaniards'  (Jlacier.  The 
Kadlschle  was  christened  the  Norris  C*  lacier  in  1880,  for  Dr.  Basil 
N orris,  U.  S.  N.,  and  in  1891  was  named  the  W'lndom  Glacier,  in  honour 
of  the  late  Secretary  of  the  Treasury.  To  tourists  and  scientists  it  is 
most  commonly  known  as  the  Norris.  It  is  more  broken  than  either 
the  Mer  de  Glace  or  the  Aletsch  Glacier,  and  is  six  times  the  width  of 
the  former  and  three  times  the  width  of  the  latter  at  the  last  gateway, 
where  it  spreads  out  into  the  great  rounded  front. 

Whidbey  and  his  men  w<»re  doubtless  the  first  whites,  the  supposed 
Spaniards,  to  enter  the  inlet,  August  10,  17i>4.  From  Vancouver's  ac- 
count, the  rapid  retreat  of  these  glaciers  maybe  Cftiniated.  "From 
tlie  shores  of  this  basin  a  compact  body  of  ice  extenled  some  distance 
nearly  all  around ;  and  the  adjacent  region  was  composed  of  a  close 
connected  continuation  of  the  lofty  range  of  fro/en  mountains,  whose 
sides,  almost  perpendicular,  were  formed  entii-ely  of  rock,  excepting  close 
to  the  water-side,  where  a  few  scattered  dwarf  pine-trees  found  sufiicient 
soil  to  vegetate  in  ;  above  these  the  mountains  were  wrapped  in  undis- 
solving frost  and  snow.  From  the  rugged  gullies  in  their  sides  were 
projected  immense  bodies  of  ice  that  reached  perpendicularly  to  the 
surface  of  the  water  in  the  basin,  which  admitted  of  no  landing-place 
for  boats,  but  exhibited  as  dreary  and  inhospitable  an  aspect  as  the 
imagination  can  pos.sibly  suggest."  The  Takus  claim  that  their  fathers 
remembered  a  time  when  the  Kadischle  (Norris-Windom)  Glacier  broke 
off  into  the  sea,  and  that  the  Kadischle  came  at  that  time. 

None  of  these  glaciers  have  been  explored  or  mapped,  nor  their  mo- 


82 


CAPE    FANSIIAWK    TO   TAKU    INIKT. 


tioM  iii(Msnre<l,  alfli()ii<rli  flic  basin  is  the  most  acccssihk' mid  convenient 
plaro  for  a  p'olo^ist's  suiiiiikt  ciiin]).  .loiiii  .Muir  says  that  ho  only 
"  flhnic'Ml "  at  the  Taku  };laciers  in  1N7'.*.  In  Iss'.t  Visi-ount  <lo  la 
SahhatiiTO  and  liis  conn-adcs  of  the  Kion<h  Alpine  Chih  ramped  here, 
but  mainly  as  spr»rtfen»t'n.  In  Is'.to  the  Coast  Survey  ehaited  the 
waters. 

The  Tohn  AV/v/',  lt"adin«r  to  the  interior,  was  known  to  the  II.  15.  Co. 
and  its  hcMid-waters  were  carefully  exploicd  liv  the  Western  I'nion 
T(de;i^rai>h  Company's  parlies,  ISIiTt-T)?.  Prospectors  have  followed  the 
Taku  since,  reportinir  it  n;ivi^MbIe  for  canoes  for  fiO  mile-,  but  i>la<^iieil 
with  mos(|uitoes.  In  Is'.*]  Lieutenant  Fredeiick  Si  hwatka  and  l)r.  ('. 
Willard  Hayes  ascended  to  the  head-waters  and  crossed  to  an  allluent  of 
the  Yukon,  by  which  thev  reached  Koit  Selkirk  and  prove<l  the  exi-t- 
enee  of  an  easv  route  to  the  noithern  nunes. 


^^ 


'^♦> 


The  Iltirris  ^liiiiii;;  District. — .luiioau  and  its  Vicinity, 

C«a»tincnu  Channel,  named  for  an  old  II.  H.  Co.  ship,  which 
was  named  for  the  (iastincau  River  near  Quebec,  Canada,  separates 
iJoui/liiKS  J.shnid  from  the  mainland  above  the  Taku  Open.  It  narrows 
from  a  mile  and  a  quarter  at  the  entiance  to  a  half  mile  abreast  the 
Treadwell  wharf,  and  the  precipitous  uountains  o\  the  eastern  side  are 
over  2,000  ft.  in  hei<;ht,  with  many  cascades  slipping  down  those  vel- 
vety green  precipices  with  cojitinuous  roar. 

Juneau,  the  larirest  town  in  the  Territory  and  the  centre  of  minin*; 
operations,  h  situated  on  the  north  or  nuunland  shore  of  Gastineau 
Channel,  1<>  miles  above  its  entrance.  It  has  a  po|»ulation  of  l,rtOt\ 
which  in  winter  is  larf^ely  increased  by  the  miners  who  come  in  from 
distant  claims  and  ])rospecting  tours.  It  has  a  court-house,  several 
small  hotels  and  lodging-houses,  15  churches,  .'^  schools,  a  hospital,  an 
opera-house,  a  weekly  newspajier,  a  volunteer  fire  brig;  !e,  a  nnlitia  com- 
pany, a  brass  band,  and,  in  ISUl,  '12  saloons.  A  village  of  Taku  Indian> 
adjoins  it  on  the  E.  below  the  wharf,  and  an  Auk  village  claims  the  flat- 
at  the  mouth  of  (iold  Creek.  A  few  interesting  graves  are  on  the  high 
ground  back  of  the  Auk  village,  many  ornamented  with  totendc  carv- 
ings, and  hung  with  valuable  dance-blankets  and  other  offerings  to  the 
departed  spirits  which  no  white  dares  distinb.  The  town-site  covers  the 
slope  of  Chicken  R'nhj<\,  sepaiated  from  li<tld  Afouu/niu  by  Gold  (Jrnk. 
Nmnbered  avenues  running  parallel  with  the  beach  terrace  the  slope, 
and  arc  inter.sectod  by  Cold,  Lincoln,  Seward,  and  Harris  Streets. 
At  Third  and  Seward  Streets  is  the  heart  of  the  town,  and  the  Indians 
hold  a  dady  open-air  fish,  berry,  vegetable,  and  curio  market  there,  ui 
addition  to  the  curio  market  on  th(>  wharf  on  steamer  davs.     There  are 


r-r 


ivenu'iit 
he  only 
t  flo  la 
o<l  licrc, 
•tod   tlif 

I.  !{.('(.. 

1  rnidii 
(Wi'tl  thr 

1(1  Dr.  ('. 
lliiorit  (tf 
Ir'  exi-i- 


Jiiity. 

|),  wliicli 
epa rate- 
narrows 
reast  the 
I  side  are 
hose  vel 

f  ininiiiii 
stiiieaii 

i,r.oo, 

in  from 
several 
lital,  an 
tia  coni- 
Indiaii- 
the  flat- 
he  high 
ic  earv- 
is  to  the 
)vers  tilt' 
/  (^rnk. 
e  glojje, 
Streets. 
Indians 
there,  ni 
here  arc 


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'i 

■M 

CAPE   FANSHAWE   TO  TAKU   INLET. 


88 


several  curio  shopB  along  Water  or  Front  Street,  and  on  Seward  Street, 
and  the  finest  display  of  seal,  otter,  beaver,  bear,  fox,  wolf,  mink,  er- 
mine, squirrel,  and  eagle  skins  will  be  found  at  the  largest  trading 
stores.  A  path  leads  from  the  top  of  Seward  Street  to  the  Auk  village 
and  to  the  cemetery  across  Gold  Creek. 

The  eminence  between  the  town  and  the  Auk  village  is  known  as 
Capitol  Hill,  and  Juneau  citizens  are  confident  that  the  future  Legisla- 
ture of  Alaska  will  convene  on  that  hill.  Juneau  miners  wrested  from 
( 'oiigress  the  few  political  advantages  the  Territory  enjoys.  They  once 
H'ut  tt  delegate  to  Washington,  and  even  had  a  clause  moving  the  capi- 
tal from  Sitka  to  Juneau  considered  in  Congress.  There  is  bitter  ri- 
valry between  the  capital  and  metropolis. 

In  1879  Indians  brought  bits  of  gold(iuartz  from  Gastincau  Channel 
to  Captain  L.  A.  Beardslee,  commanding  the  U.  S.  S.  JameHlown  at  Sitka. 
Ill  1S80  Mr.  N.  A.  Fuller,  a  Sitka  merchant,  "  grub-staked  "  Joseph  Ju- 
mau  and  Richard  Harris  and  sent  them  to  search  "  the  largest  of  three 
nceks  lying  between  the  Auk  Glacier  and  Taku  Inlet."  They  beached 
tliL'ir  canoe  on  October  1st,  and  broke  rich  specimens  from  the  "  Fuller 
till'  First  "  claim  in  the  Basin  at  the  head  of  tlie  creek  three  dajs  later. 
Kcturning  to  the  beach,  they  held  a  meeting,  with  Joseph  Juneau  in  the 
cliair,  organized  the  "  Harris  Mining  District  of  Alaska,"  and  made  Rich- 
ard Harris  recorder.  When  the  discovery  was  made  known,  there  was 
a  stampede  for  "  the  Taku  (amp,"  and  hundreds  reached  Miners'  Cove 
that  winter  in  order  to  be  on  the  ground  in  the  spring.  A  guard  of 
niaiines  from  the  U.  S.  S.  Jameslovn  maintained  order  during  the  first 
year,  but  when  withdrawn,  an  era  of  lawlessness  succeeded,  which  was 
slightly  quelled  by  the  vigilance  committee  of  1883-84.  With  no  land- 
laws,  and  no  Government  recognition  o  ^.rotection,  the  miners  could  not 
etrect  much  until  the  passage  of  the  Oi'ganic  act,  in  1884,  gave  them 
title  to  mineral  claims,  since  which  the  region  has  rapidly  progressed. 

The  new  camp  was  named  Pilzbury,  for  the  first  assayer  who  came ; 
then  Fliptown,  as  a  miner's  joke ;  next  Rockwell,  for  the  marine  officer 
of  the  U.  S.  S.  JamcKtowH  ;  fourthly,  it  was  called  Harrisburg ;  and 
lifihly,  Juneau.  This  last  name  was  formally  adopted  at  a  miners' 
iiiocting  held  in  May,  1882,  and  at  the  same  time  all  Chinese  were  or- 
'iorc'd  to  leave  the  camp.  There  were  anti-Chinese  riots  in  1886 ; 
Chinese  cabins  were  blown  up  by  dynamite,  and  the  Chinese  in  town 
uini  at  the  mines  on  the  island  were  driven  on  board  a  schooner  and  set 
Mill  lit  without  provisions.  The  town-site  was  surveyed  and  patented  in 
lH",t2. 

The  Silver-Bow  Basin  Mines. 

The  mines  in  the  Silver-Bow  Basin,  at  the  head  of  Gold  Creek, 
;iit'  reached  by  a  well-built  waggon-road,  3^  miles  in  length.  The  old 
ti.iil  may  be  seen  zig-zagging  across  the  hillside  behind  the  beach,  but 


H. 


i 


84 


CAPE   FANSIIAWE   TO  TAKU   INLET. 


m     ^ 

m 

is  rto  overgrown  on  the  Banin  nide  that  its  iiac  is  inipractit'able.  There 
18  a  road  along  cither  side  of  the  creek,  that  on  the  southern  or  Juneau 
side  affording  the  finest  views  of  the  opposite  Yoseniite  walls. 

Snouslidc  Cfult-h,  on  this  Juneau  side,  usually  bars  the  pathway  witli 
deep  snow-banks  throughout  the  summer.  "Coulters,"  or  the  Takii 
LTnion  mill,  is  half-way  up  the  eanon,  and  on  the  northern  side  a  wiro 
tramway  brings  buckets  of  ore  frf>ra  a  claim  high  on  Bald  Monittnin, 
among  bryanthus  meadows  where  the  mountain-goiit  browses.  (Jraniti' 
Creek,  a  clear  blue  mountain  stream,  joins  (Jold  ('reek  at  the  entrance 
to  the  Silver-bow  Basin,  which  a  party  of  Montana  miners  named  for 
their  last  camp  in  that  State.  This  deep  bowl  in  the  mountains  has 
long  received  the  dvbvh  gi'ound  from  the  perpendicular  walls,  and  was 
the  rich  placer-ground  worked  in  tho>ie  first  years  when  a  half  million 
in  gold  dust  and  nuggets  was  carried  out  by  the  miners  each  season. 
VVhen  these  placers  were  worked  as  low  as  their  water  system  would 
allow,  the  claims  were  abandou'^d.  Over  60  old  placer  claims,  all  the 
level  floor  of  the  Basin,  are  owned  by  the  Silver-Bow  Basin  Mining 
Company,  of  Boston,  which  has  driven  a  tunnel  3,000  ft,  in  length  in 
from  Charlotte  fiaain  below,  and  made  an  upraise  of  90  ft.  to  pits 
where  two  hydraulic  giants  are  washing  out  the  banks  by  many  acres 
each  season.  Work  is  continued  night  and  day  from  May  to  October 
by  the  use  of  electric  lights.  The  same  company  have  acquired  many 
of  the  qiiartz  claims  surrounding  the  Basin,  and  their  20-st5imp-niill 
disposes  of  many  tons  of  ore  daily.  The  Silver  Quiver,  a  vast 
cataract  of  foam,  in  outline  like  an  arrow-case,  hangs  high  on  the 
farther  wall,  its  300  ft.  fall  dwarfed  by  its  gigantic  surroundings.  The 
Eastern  Alaska  Mill  is  driven  by  this  waterfall,  and  the  ore  comes  to  it 
in  buckets  moving  on  a  wire  tramway  from  the  tunnel,  1,000  ft.  above. 

Sheep  Creek,  2  miles  S.  of  Juneau,  holds  a  waggon-road  which 
leads  by  steep  and  picturesque  shelves  to  a  small  basin  where  rich  sil- 
ver vein;  crop  out.  A  mill  was  erected  and  the  ore  successfully  worked 
for  two  seasons,  1890-'91.  The  ore  averaged  $40  per  ton,  and  beauti- 
ful s^pecimens  of  ruby-silver,  averaging  75  per  cent  silver,  were  found. 
The  same  veins  crossing  the  ridge  reappeared  on  Grindstone  Creek,  en 
the  Taku  Inlet  side.  The  Sheep  Creek  Basin  is  the  most  pictur- 
esque of  such  high  mountain  valleys,  its  floor  a  vast  flower-bed,  and  its 
perpendicular  walls  support  gleaming  glaciers. 

Lemoriy  Alontana^  and  Salmon  Creeks,  on  the  mainland  shore  above 
Juneau,  hold  large  gravel-beds,  which  it  is  proposed  to  work  with  hy- 


CAPE   FANSriAVVK   TO   TAKU    INLET. 


85 


(Iraulio  giantH.  The  upper  reaches  of  (Jastineau  Channel  were  iu»t  navi- 
<:al>le  in  Vancouver's  time,  because  of  the  floating  ice  from  the  great 
Auk  Glftrlrr*  the  SItth  Klee  ('hannje  (the  place  where  beef  or  meat 
i-  found).  The  Auks  gave  it  tliis  name  l)ecause  they  were  always  sure 
of  linding  mountain-goat  on  the  pastures  around  its  neve.  The  glacial 
il(>l)ris  has  now  iilled  out  the  channel,  until  it  is  only  navigable  to 
canoes  at  high  tide. 

These  Auks,  who  claim  Douglass  Island  and  the  shores  fronting 
it,  are  said  to  be  outcasts  from  the  Iloonah  tribe,  and  have  always  had 
a  bad  name.  They  numbered  800  in  1869,  in  1880  thoy  were  counted 
for  »»40,  and  in  1890  there  were  but  277  found  by  census  enumerators. 
When  Vancouver's  men  hurried  away  from  the  trumpeting  Chilkats 
tlii'v  fell  among  the  Auks.  Their  canoes  trailed  after  and  surroimded 
Wliidbey's  boats.  With  daggers  lashed  to  their  wrists,  the  warriors 
lauded  in  advance,  and  danced  on  the  beach,  spears  in  hand,  Mr. 
Whidbey  became  nervous,  and  considering  it  more  "prudent  and  hu- 
iiiaue  "  not  to  disturb  them,  whiled  away  the  night  in  his  boats,  and  then 
returned  to  the  fleet  at  Port  Althorp. 

The  Largest  Quartz  Mill  in  the  World. f 

Douglass  Island,  '25  miles  long  and  averaging  from  5  to  8  r  liles 
in  width,  is  as  much  a  treasure-island  as  the  Pribylotfs.  One  mine,  the 
Treadwell,  has  yielded  more  gold  than  was  paid  for  all  of  Alaska, 
and  while  a  few  prospectors  have  crossed  the  island,  they  have  only 
SI  latched  its  shore-line  in  their  search  for  minerals.  Vancouver  named 
the  island  for  his  friend  the  Bishop  of  Salisbury.  It  was  an  untouched 
wilderness  until  1881,  when  miners,  who  came  too  late  to  .stake  off 
anything  on  the  Juneau  side,  made  a  camp  opposite  the  tiny  Juneau 
Isle.  John  Treadwell,  a  San  Francisco  builder,  unwillingly  took  the 
original  Bean  and  Matthews  claim  on  Paris  Creek  as  security  for  the 
loan  of  $150.  After  it  had  fallen  to  him,  he  bought  the  adjoining 
claim  of  M.  Pierre  Joseph  Ernsara,  or  "  French  Pete,"  for  $300. 
Messrs.  Frye,  Freeborn,  and  Hill,  of  San  Francisco,  and  Senator  John 
P.  Jones,  of  Nevada,  became  equal  partners  with  him.  Mr.  Treadwell 
remained  on  the  ground,  and  personally  held  and  defended  his  prop- 
erty from  lawless  squatters,  who  washed  off  the  surface  of  his  lode, 
and  could  not  be  driven  oflE  until  the  organic  act  secured  his  title. 

*  The  Auk  Glacier  was  named  the  MendeiduiU  Glacier  bv  officers 
of  the  Coast  Survey  in  1891. 

t  There  are  single  mining  corporations  in  Hungary  and  South  Africa 
employing  as  many  stamps,  but  in  separate  buildings  and  plants. 


r^i*ti* 


m 


^  ;'fei 


i'^i 


8(J 


CAPK   FAN8IIAWE   TO  TAKU    INLET. 


Over  $8f)0,0f)0  has  bc«'n  spent  upon  the  Trciulwrll  works  i-iiicr 
then;  |1()0,(HK)  wae  spent  on  a  ditch  18  miles  lon^,  Hml  )ji:{oo,0(M)  in 
experimenting  with  difFerent  processes  of  chlorination  before  n  sati>- 
factory  one  was  found.  The  one  mill  of  <140  stamps,  the  largest  of  it- 
kind  in  the  world,  has  never  stopped  night  or  day,  summer  or  winter. 
save  to  set  new  machinery.  Six  hundred  tons  of  ore  is  milled  earli 
day,  averaging  from  $3  to  '^1  per  ton  in  value,  and  milled  at  a  cost  of 
$1.26  per  ton.  The  ore  is  <piarried  in  open  pits,  and,  falling  through 
ore-sh<K)ts  to  cars  in  the  tunnels  below,  is  moved  by  gravity  thnmgli 
every  process.  The  heavy  plume  of  smoke  fi-oni  the  Tread  well's  ohin. 
rination  works  has  killed  vegetation  for  a  mile  up  and  down  the  Islaiid'- 
edge. 

The  mill-owners  make  no  objection  to  tourists  visiting  the  establish- 
ment, but  as  they  cannot  undertake  to  suspend  work  nor  to  station 
guards  or  guides,  visitors  are  urged  to  exei-cise  great  cauti(m  in  enter 
ing  tunnels,  where  trains  are  always  moving;  pits,  where  blasts  are  be 
ing  tired;  and  the  null,  where  no  voice  can  be  heard  to  warn  them  nf 
belts  and  cogs.  Uy  following  the  path  around  to  the  left  of  the  mil!. 
(me  may  reach  the  edges  of  the  two  great  pits,  and  by  following  the 
pipe-line  uj)  to  the  reservoir,  a  quarter  of  a  mile  from  the  wharf,  ho 
reaches  a  meadow  of  dwarf  laurel  and  coimtless  strange  wild  flowei>. 
The  ditch  and  Hume  furnish  a  pathway  through  the  heart  of  the  fore-t. 
following  the  convolutions  of  the  hillsides  to  a  point  8  milca  above  thi' 
mill  in  air-line,  but  18  miles  distant  by  the  flume. 

The  Mexiam  mine,  adjoining  the  Treadwell  on  the  east,  is  owned  by 
the  same  stockholders,  and  fuither  claims  assert  the  extension  of  the 
same  mineral  vein  nearly  to  the  foot  of  the  island. 

The  Beards  ^ent  mine,  adjoining  the  Treadwell  on  the  west,  is 
owned  by  German  and  English  capitalists,  and,  owing  to  disagreements 
between  mining  engineers  and  stockholders,  the  big  mill  was  never  op- 
erated after  its  completion  in  1888.  Its  promise  built  up  the  adjacent 
Douglas  Citi/,  which  held  but  300  inhabitants  in  18'.>0,  with  a  street 
of  stores,  a  saw-mill,  a  church,  and  a  school-house. 

The  U.  S.  Geological  Survey  has  never  nmde  examination  of  this 
mineral  region.  The  enormous  deposit  of  low-grade  ore  <m  the  Tread- 
well claim  is  a  fault  or  freak,  a  mere  pocket  or  chimney  of  quartz 
not  parallelled  elsewhere  on  the  channel.  The  most  experienced  min- 
ing superintendents  confess  themselves  puzzled  in  this  country,  geo- 
logically unlike  any  other.  The  country  rock,  the  general  formation,  is 
slate,  which,  with  granite,  holds  the  quartz  veins,  but  the  veins  are 
broken,  confused,  thrown  in  every  way,  often  without  distinct  walls, 
and  a  large  party  contend  that  there  are  not  any  true  fissure  veins  in 
the  country.  Dr.  George  M.  Dawson  visited  the  Treadwell  for  his  own 
geological  satisfaction,  and  wrote  in  "  The  American  Geologist,"  Au- 
gust, 1889 :  "  It  presents  none  of  the  characters  of  an  ordinary  lode  or 
vein,  being  without  any  parallel  or  arrangement  of  its  constituents,  and 
showing  no  such  coarse  crystalline  structure  as  a  lode  of  larger  dimen- 
sions might  be  expected  to  exhibit." 

Miners'  wages  range  from  $2  per  day  for  Indians,  and  from  $3  per 


rks  bhwv 
•o,0()0  in 
e  n  Hat  is- 
eat  of  it- 
>r  wiMt«'r. 

led    CHcll 

a  C((st  of 
tliroii^'h 
throiij:li 

jII'h  ol.lo. 

e  irtliuid'.- 

fstftblish- 

(>  station 

in  ent«  r 

ts  nfe  hf- 

\  tllCIII  of 

the  mill, 
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wharf,  lie 
d  flo\vtM>. 
he  foiot. 
above  thi' 

owned  !»> 
on  of  till' 

west,  is 
eenients 
never  op- 
adjacent 
a  street 

m  of  this 
le  Tread- 
quartz 
eed  min- 
itry,  peo- 
iiation,  is 
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ct  walls, 
veins  in 
his  own 
-ist,"  Au- 
y  lode  or 
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r  dimen- 


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ADMIKAI/n'    IHLANl). 


87 


iluv  upward  for  white  men,  with  board  und  iod^iiig  provided  bv  the  em- 
plover.  Tlie  eo^t  of  provlsioiiH  averages  more  than  $1  u  day  for  each 
iiitiii  ill  the  larger  eHtablisluiientfl.  Ueef  eattle  are  Itrou^lit  up  from  the 
Sound  and  Hlau^htered  at  Juneau,  wlileli  in  tlie  only  pliiee  in  Ala.  ka  en- 
joying a  repihir  supply  of  froi^h  beef.  Witli  the  abundanee  and  eheap- 
iKss  of  veniHon,  duck,  nalinon  and  Mther  fifth,  the  proxpector  lives  U't- 
ter  with  less  exertion  and  coHt  than  in  any  other  known  niinin)^  region. 
Ttii  pound  salmon  may  be  bought  for  Hv(>  and  ten  cents  in  the  t umnier, 
lialibut  a.>4  cheaply  in  the  winter,  and  a  whole  deer  for  isf'i  at  any  oeaeon, 
uiul  the  miner  has  less  to  contend  with  than  in  Arizona,  Montana,  or 
otlior  new  countries.  Every  conduion  of  life  in  those  regions  in  re- 
versed, however.  All  travel  is  by  water,  the  cunoe  becomes  his  pack- 
niiile,  and  water-co.irses  are  his  only  trails.  He  hug  to  cut  his  way 
tlirough  an  unbroken  forest  from  the  moment  Ik>  leaves  his  canoe,  sink- 
in*;  knee-deep  in  the  thick  moss  or  sphii^^num,  and  a  camp-Kre  bui'it  on 
siuii  ground  gradually  burns  a  deep  wi'll-hoh-  for  itself.  A  tent  and 
II  >ihley  stove  are  necessary  in  this  region  of  fre(|uent  rains. 


Admiralty  Island. 

.Vdmiralty  Island,  10(»  miles  in  length,  with  an  avc.  .ge  breadth 
of  .'?i>  miles,  is  unsurveycd  like  the  other  great  islands,  save  as  the 
prospectors  have  followed  the  shores  an<l  the  water-courses.  Kootz. 
iHthoo  Inlet  cuts  it  nearly  in  two,  and  is  an  inland  sea  embracing  a 
small  archipelago  of  its  own,  sheltered  in  the  heart  of  the  little  Ad- 
miralty continent. 

iilasH  Peninmihi,  on  the  eastern  side,  is  a  considerable  island  itself, 
and  only  joined  to  the  parent  shore  by  a  spongy  isthmus,  over  which 
the  Auks  drag  their  canoes.  Hawk  Inlet  almost  ctits  loose  the  north- 
ern end  of  the  island,  which  is  as  large  and  considered  as  rich  miner- 
alojiically  as  the  opposite  Douglass  Island.  A  snow-capped  rootmtaiu 
range  fills  the  interior.  Marble  bluffs  front  for  miles  on  the  western 
shore,  and  coal  has  been  found  in  Kootznahoo  Inlei,  und  on  the  south- 
Ciistern  shore. 

(iold  quartz  veins  were  found  on  the  northcni  shore,  and  this  "  Tel- 
lurium Group  "  promises  to  build  a  second  Juneau  in  the  picturesque 
l)ay  named  for  Captain  Robert  Funter,  an  early  navigator  of  the  North- 
west Coast. 

Killisnpo,  on  Kcnasnoio  ("  near  the  fort ")  Island,  holds  Kotcosok 
Iliirhour  between  it  and  the  Admiralty  shore,  and  is  the  site  of  large 
oil  and  guano  works.    There  are  a  p  U-office,  Government  school,  and 
Russian  chapel  at  this  place,  and  '  village  of  Kootznahoo  Indians 
under  command  of  their  great  chief  Kitchnatti,  or  Saginaw  Jake. 


mn 


m 


88 


ADMIRALTY    ISLAND. 


hi :  - 


n 


J , . > 


The  first  post  of  the  Northwest  Trading  Company  was  established 
here  in  1880  as  a  shore  station  for  whaling.  The  explosion  of  a  bomb 
harpoon  killed  a  great  medicine-man  in  1882,  and  the  company  re- 
fused the  Kootznahoos'  demand  of  200  blankets  as  indemnity.  The 
natives  held  a  white  man  as  ransom,  but  discovering  him  to  possess 
but  one  eye  they  returned  him  as  cultun  (worthless),  and  demanded  a 
whole  and  sound  man  as  an  equivalent  for  their  dead  shaman.  Their 
threats  to  murder  the  whites  at  the  station  were  answered  by  Cap- 
tain Mcrriman,  the  naval  commander  at  Sitka,  who  hurried  over  in 
a  revenue  cutter,  hold  a  council,  and  bombarded  the  v'llage  of  Angoon, 
the  Bear  Fort  of  the  Kootznahoos  in  the  great  inlet.  Much  indigna- 
tion was  vented  by  Eastern  editors  at  the  occurrence,  and  sad  pictures 
were  drawn  of  the  natives  left  shelterless  among  "  the  eternal  ice  and 
snows  of  an  arctic  winter."  The  mercury  stood  20^  higher  for  the 
month  than  in  New  York  and  Boston,  and  the  Kootznahoos,  securing 
front  seats  on  the  o])posite  shore,  watched  the  bombardment  and 
cheered  the  neatest  shots.  The  tribe  saved  their  winter  provisioriS 
and  all  their  belongings,  save  what  pilferers  took  during  the  bombard- 
ment. They  paid  a  fine  of  400  blankets,  and  have  since  kept  the 
peace. 

FISHERIES  OF  THE  REGION. 

The  cod  which  abound  in  Chatham  Strait  were  for  a  time  packed 
at  Killisnoo,  the  natives  receiving  two  cents  apiece  for  the  8,000  and 
10,000  fish  of  5  pounds'  average  weight  which  they  brought  in  daily  from 
their  trawls.  The  cod  were  dried  artificially,  and  an  excellent  quality 
of  cod-liver  oil  was  made,  but  this  factory  could  not  compete  with  the 
Shumagin  fleet  which  controlled  the  market  at  San  Francisco,  The 
herring,  "  which  has  decided  the  destiny  of  nations,"  next  made  the 
fortunes  of  Killisnoo.  From  September  to  May  all  these  waters  are 
visited  by  great  schools  of  herrings,  and  once  in  August  the  mail 
steamer  passed  through  one  school  for  four  hours — the  water  silvered 
as  far  as  could  be  seen,  many  whales  and  flocks  of  gulls  attracted 
by  this  run  of  plenty.  The  natives  rake  them  from  the  water  with  a 
bit  of  lath  set  with  nails,  and  a  family  can  fill  a  canoe  in  an  hour. 
Spruce  brancher,  are  laid  in  shallow  water  along  the  shore,  and  the 
herring  roe  deposited  on  them  are  stored  in  cakes  for  winter  use.  The 
factory's  crews  net  from  300  to  600  barrels  of  herring  at  a  single 
haul.  Often  1,000  barrels  are  seined  at  once,  and  1,500  barrels  were 
recently  taken  by  one  cast  of  the  seine  in  Sitka  harbour.  The  same 
machinery  and  processes  are  used  at  Killisnoo  as  at  the  menhaden 
factories  in  the  East.  Each  barrel  of  fish  when  pressed  yields  3 
quarts  of  oil,  valued  at  25  and  35  cents  a  gallon.  The  refrse  of  JO 
barrels  of  fish,  dried  and  powdered,  furnishes  one  ton  of  gua  o,  worth 
$30,  and  is  much  in  demand  for  Hawaiian  sugar  plantations  and  Cali- 
fornia fruit  ranches. 

One  hundred  whites  and  50  natives  are  employed,  and  the  factory  is 
a  model  of  neatness  and  order,  despite  the  odours,  Its  gardens  are 
worthy  of  a  visit. 


^'3^^' 


ADMIRALTY   ISLAND. 


89 


tations  and  Cali- 


THE  KOOTZNAHOOS. 

Saflinaw  Jake  is  a  chief  object  of  interest  to  tourists.  His  people, 
the  Kootznahoos,  whose  name  has  been  spelled  in  fifteen  ways,  claim  to 
hiive  come  from  over  the  seas,  and  deny  any  coi.mon  origin  with  the 
Tlingits.  They  first  manufactured  the  native  spirit,  hoocfiinoo,  which 
carries  more  frenzy  in  each  drop  than  any  other  liciuid,  and  is  dis- 
tilled in  old  coal-oil  cans  from  a  mash  composed  of  yeast  and  molasses 
or  sugar,  mixed  with  flour.  They  made  hostile  demonstrations  to  Van- 
couver's men,  and  Whidboy  believed  it  "  more  humane  and  prudent " 
to  leave  before  tempted  to  hurt  the  Kootznahoos,  They  muMered 
traders  and  prospectors  as  soon  as  the  Russians  loft,  and  in  1869  Com- 
niiinder  Meade,  U.  8.  N.,  went  in  the  Sarfinaw,  shelled  the  village  in 
the  inlet,  took  Kitchnatti  prisoner  and  convoyed  him  to  Mare  Island, 
('ill.,  where  he  was  confined  on  the  Haginuw  for  a  year.  The  result  of 
this  arrest  rendered  it  unnecessary  to  transfer  the  garrison  from 
Sitka  and  build  a  post  on  Admiralty  Island,  as  had  been  contem- 
plated. The  tribe,  reduced  to  4*70  souls  in  1890,  one  half  the  number 
reported  in  1869,  are  peaceable  followers  of  this  old  chief,  who  wears 
a  gaudy  uniform,  and  posts  this  scutcheon  over  his  log-cabin  door ; 

"  KITCHNATTI." 

"  By  the  Giwemor's  commission, 
And  the  company's  permissiou, 
I'm  made  the  Grand  Tyhee 
Of  this  entire  illabee. 

"  Prominent  in  song  and  story, 
I've  attained  the  top  of  glory. 
Ae  '  Saginaw '  I'm  known  to  fame, 
Jake  '  is  but  my  common  name.' " 

A  yonng  demagogue,  a  common  Kootznahoo  politician,  has  lately 
set  up  af  a  rival  and  successor  of  Jake,  displays  a  bombastic  couplet 
on  his  door-post,  and  matches  every  move  the  great  man  makes. 

There  is  a  large  lagoon  opposite  Killhnoo,  reached  by  a  rocky  pass 
at  high  tide  and  by  carries  at  low  water,  where  herring  swarm  in  their 
time,  malma  swim  in  the  tourists'  season,  and  luck  always  attends  a 
fisherman.  KiVisnoc  is  an  admirable  headfpiarters  for  sportsmen, 
who  can  here  charter  launches  and  find  native  guides  and  canoemen. 

Kootznahoo  Inlet  can  busy  sportsmen-explorers  for  more  than 
a  month,  and  is  a  maze  of  islands,  inlets,  bays,  coves,  lagoons,  creeks, 
and  lakes.  The  narrow  entrance  is  3  miles  above  Killisnoo,  and  just 
within  there  is  a  reef-strewn  pass,  where  the  tide  runs  out  with  great 
overfalls  and  roars,  attaining  a  speed  of  12  knots  an  hour — the  equal 
of  Seymour  Narrows.  At  the  Hevorul  Rapids,  Captain  Meade  an- 
chored the  Saginav)  at  slack  water  in  1869,  but  with  the  ebb  of  the 
tide  the  whirlpools  and  overfalls  caused  the  vessel  to  keel  ovci;  to 


90 


ALONG  CHATHAM   STRAIT   AND   LYNN   CANAL. 


sheer  violently  and  nearly  snap  its  cables  before  it  could  get  away. 
He  named  the  place  HeWs  Acre.  The  large  village  facing  this  wattry 
acre,  although  deemed  a  secure  retreat  in  all  attacks,  was  strongly  forti- 
fied, and  the  older  lodges  and  the  graveyard  are  interesting. 

Veins  of  bituminous  eoal  at  the  head  of  the  inlet  were  discovered 
by  Lieutenant  Mitchell,  U.  S.  N.,  in  1868,  were  visited  by  Mr,  Seward 
the  following  year,  and  have  been  regularly  rediscovered  every  season 
since.  As  first  tested,  it  burned  quickly,  produced  great  heat,  but 
rapidly  destroyed  grate-bars  and  boiler-iron.  Many  interesting  io^^sil 
plants  and  shells  and  larger  remains  have  been  found  in  the  shales, 
clay,  and  sandstones  of  these  formations,  and  the  supposed  collar-boue 
of  a  pterodactyl,  exhumed  here  by  Rich  and  Willoughby,  was  long  ex- 
hibited at  Juneau.  Bear  deer,  wild  fowl,  salmon,  malma,  and  trout 
reward  those  seeking  them,  and  artists  are  promised  landscape  re- 
wards. 


Along  Chatham  Strait  and  Lynn  Canal 

Chatham  Strait  and  its  northern  continuation,  liyiin  Canal, 
afford  the  noblest  water-way  in  the  archipelago,  a  broad  highway  run- 
ning almost  due  N.  and  S,  for  200  miles,  with  an  average  width  of  T) 
miles.  Geologists  easily  recognize  it  as  the  bed  of  f  great  glacier. 
Colnett  and  the  early  fur-traders  knew  it  and  named  it  before  Van- 
couver arrived,  and  the  latter  wrote  that  "  the  sea-otter  were  in  such 
plenty  that  it  was  easily  in  the  power  of  the  natives  to  procure  as 
many  as  they  chose  to  be  at  the  trouble  of  taking."  The  free  fishing 
which  Russia  allowed  for  the  ten  years  after  the  conventions  of  1824- 
'26  exterminated  the  precious  animal. 

Chatham  Strait  is  a  playground  of  inferior  whales,  great  toteniie 
creatures  whom  the  Tlingits  believed  were  once  bears,  but,  going  to 
sea,  wore  off  their  fur  on  the  rocks  and  had  their  feet  nibbled  off 
by  fishes.  A  demon,  or  the  all-misehievous  raven,  often  creeps  down 
the  whale's  throat,  and  causes  such  agony  that  the  whale  i'ushes  to 
shore  and  vomits  the  intruder  on  the  beach.  Pair  tings  and  carvings 
showing  the  demon  in  the  whale's  body  are  often  assumed  as  proof 
that  the  Tlingits  have  a  Jonah  legend  and  direct  Asiatic  descent.  Tlie 
Chatham  Strait  whales  are  credited  with  the  same  aggressive  disposi- 
tion as  the  cinnamon  bear,  attacking  and  destroying  canoes.  A  few 
years  ago,  a  duck-hunter,  who  unintentionally  wounded  a  frolicking 
whale,  was  attacked,  and  only  escaped  by  reaching  shallow  water. 

Halibut-fishing  may  be  followed  with  success  anywhere  in  the 
strait,  and  the  crudest  tackle  with  a  bit  of  salmon  or  a  herring  for 
bait  will  decoy  "chicken  halibut"  of  30  and  60  pounds  while  a 
Steamer  waits  at  Eillisnoo  wharf. 


ALONG   CHATHAM   8TEATT   AND   LYNN   CANAL. 


91 


Lynn  Canal,  the  grandest  fiord  on  the  coast,  was  named  for 
Vancouver's  native  town  in  Norfolk,  England,  and  Ir  tint  Converden  at 
its  entrance  celebrates  his  own  country  estate.  It  extends  for  55  miles 
to  Seduction  Point,  where  it  divides  into  the  Chilhit  Inlet  on  the  W. 
and  the  Chilkoot  Inlet  on  the  E.  It  has  but  few  indentations,  and  the 
abrupt  palisades  of  the  mainland  shores  present  an  unrivalled  pano- 
rama of  mountains,  glaciers,  and  forests,  with  wonderful  cloud  eifects. 
Depths  of  430  fathoms  have  been  sounded  in  the  caual,  and  the  conti- 
nental range  on  the  E.  and  the  White  Mountains  on  the  W.  rise  to 
average  heights  of  6,000  ft.,  with  glaciers  in  every  ravine  and  alcove. 

The  Eagle  Glacier  shows  first  on  the  mainland  shore  above  the 
Auk  Glacier.  "  Tt  is  surmounted  by  a  rocky  crag,  which  resembles 
our  national  bird  so  much  more  than  does  the  figure  on  the  new  dollar, 
that  we  christened  it  the  Eagle  Glacier,"  wrote  Captain  Beardslee  m 
August,  1879. 

The  Cameron  Boundary  Line  *  crossing  from  Point  Whidbey  to 
Point  Bridget  would  cut  the  fiord  in  two  and  give  to  Canada  Ber- 
ner''s  Bay,  where  the  Tucknook  placers  and  the  Seward  City  mines 
give  great  promise.  Captain  White,  who  found  rich  sulphurets  at 
Funter  Bay  in  1868,  took  the  Wayanda  into  Berner's  Bay  and  found 
''numerous  quartz  veins  containing  sulphurets,"  which  he  had  also 
found  "  occurring  in  similar  formation  along  the  N.  E.  shore  of  Admi- 
ralty Island,  and  on  the  mainland  as  far  as  Taku  Harbour,  60  miles 
S.  E.  of  Berner's  Bay." 

William  Henry  Bay,  on  the  opposite  shore,  is  a  nook  commend- 
ed to  sportsmen  by  Captain  L.  A.  Beardslee,  whom  the  struggling  salm- 
on tripped  up  as  he  attempted  to  wade  the  stream ;  who  found  many 
bear-tracks,  and  evidences  of  the  best  duck-shooting.  Fifty  spider 
eiabs  were  speared  by  his  companion  in  a  few  hours,  a  crab  whose 
claws  measure  5  ft.  from  tip  to  tip,  and  whose  7-inch  shell  is  packed 
with  a  fine,  delicious  meat. 

Seduction  Point  was  so  named  by  Vancouver  because  of  "  the  ex- 
ceedingly artful  character"  of  the  natives  inhabiting  it.  Several 
canoe-loads  of  Chilkats  met  Whidbey  at  this  point,  seemed  iiost 
friendly  and  hospitable,  and  led  the  way  up  the  western  arm,  but  grew 
hostile  when  the  Englishmen  refused  to  cross  the  bar  and  ascend  the 
river  to  the  village  where  eight  chiefs  of  consequence  resided.  All 
were  arrayed  in  ceremonial  dress,  wearing  the  fringed  narkhcm,  or 
Chilkat  dance-blanket,  with  tall  head-dresses,  and  one  flourished  a 


*  See  map  on  page  51. 


92      CHILKAT  COTTNTRY   AND   PASSES   TO  THE   YUKON. 


H 


brass  speaking-trumpet  with  great  effect.  When  Whidbey  returned 
from  t\m  cruise,  Vancouver  abandoned  all  hope  of  finding  the  North- 
west  Passage  : 

"  From  the  close  connection  and  continuation  of  the  lofty,  snowy 
barrier,  little  piobability  can  remain  of  there  being  any  navigable 
commun  cation,  even  for  canoes,  between  such  waters  (Hudson  Bay) 
and  the  North  Pacific  Ocean,  without  the  interruption  of  falls,  cata- 
racts, and  various  other  impediments,"  and  for  90  years  explorers 
halted  at  the  foot  of  this  great  barrier,  the  "  firm  and  close  connected 
range  of  stupendous  mountains  forever  doomed  to  support  a  burden 
of  undissolving  ice  und  snow." 

The  Davidson  Glacier,  which  sweeps  superbly  from  a  gorge  in 
the  White  Mountains  and  spreads  out  in  a  broad,  evenly  ribbed  fan 
fiont,  is  the  most  imposing  and  symmetrical  ice-stream  of  its  type  in 
the  region.  It  is  named  for  Prof.  George  Davidson,  the  astronomer, 
who  explored  its  lower  slopes  during  his  visits  to  the  Chilkat  country 
in  1867  and  1869.  It  has  built  a  terminal  moraine  far  out  into  tlie 
chrnnel,  and  a  half-mile- wide  forest  belt  encircles  the  three-mile  curve 
of  the  glacier's  foot.  The  moraine  is  channelled  with  strean.s  and  is 
swampy  throughout.  The  base  of  the  glacier  presents  a  chaotic  mass 
of  grimy  ice-blocks,  and  it  is  a  tortuous  mile  up  the  ice  cliffs  and  be- 
tween crevasses  to  the  line  of  the  mountain  gateway,  where  Prof. 
Davidson  found  the  ice-level  645  ft.  above  the  channel.  Steam- 
launches  can  be  chartered  at  the  canneries  to  cor  'oy  tourists  to  this 
glacier,  and  a  tolerably  dry  path  has  been  found  leading  to  the  ice. 
The  finest  view  of  the  glacier  is  had  from  the  ship  when  directly 
abreast  of  it  in  the  morning.  From  Pyramid  Harbour  the  ice  mass 
seems  to  project  in  air  and  overhang  its  base. 


nit' 


The  Chilkat  Country  and  the  Passes  to  the  Yukon. 

There  is  a  small  glacier  in  the  canon  behind  Pyramid  Harbour 
which  lies  at  the  foot  of  the  precipitous  mountain  named  for  the  H.  H. 
Co.'s  ship  Labouchcrc.  This  remarkable  mountain  rises  as  straight  as 
a  mason's  wall  for  2,000  ft.  above  the  beach,  "  subtending  an  an^^le 
of  more  than  30°  as  seen  from  the  shore  of  the  harbour,"  and  shad- 
owing a  ship  at  anchor.  It  has  been  climbed  in  two  hours  by  an 
approach  from  the  west  side,  but  its  forests  contain  many  bears,  whom 
the  climber  must  be  prepared  to  meet.  The  cannery  and  trading  station 
at  Pyramid  Harbour  were  established  in  1882,  and  have  been  successful, 
save  in  the  season  of  1891,  when  a  spring  avalanche  wrecked  the  cau- 


ii ..'',(.' 


KON. 


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it  into  the 
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the  H.  H. 
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CHILKAT  COUNTRY  AND  PASSE*  TO  THE  YUKON.  93 


nery  and  cabins.  There  is  usually  a  large  camp  of  C})ilkat  Indians  be- 
low the  cannery,  and  addition  to  baskets,  spoons,  and  curios  they  often 
make  a  flower  market  with  the  wild  roses  and  iris  which  attain  won- 
derful size  and  colour  in  this  Alpine  valley.  Wild  strawberries  are 
found  on  the  flats,  together  with  the  salmon-berries  and  thimble-ber- 
ries of  the  coast. 

The  little  Pyramid  Island,  off  Pyramid  Harbour,  has  been  also 
known  as  Stony,  Sandy,  Farewell,  and  Observatory  Island.  The  native 
name  is  Shla-hutch.  It  is  the  U.  S.  astronomical  station,  its  posi- 
tion 59°  ir  north  and  135"  26'  west,  and  is  the  tourist's  farthest 
north,  where  he  exposes  photographic  plates,  and  reads  fine  print,  at 
midnight  in  July. 

Chilkbt,  a  rival  cannery  and  trading  station,  was  built  on  the  op- 
posite side  of  the  inlet  in  1884,  and  as  a  point  of  departure  for  Yukon 
travellers  this  has  Chilkat  become  quite  a  village.  The  Chilkat  can- 
nery is  one  of  the  largest  in  southeastern  Alaska,  and  its  catch  of  king 
and  red  salmon  busies  a  large  force  of  whites  and  Chinese.  The  na- 
tives were  not  altogether  pleased  with  the  canncrs'  invasion,  and  there 
have  been  many  troubles.  The  rivalry  of  the  canneries  once  raised 
the  price  of  a  single  salmon  from  two  to  fifteen  cents,  and  when  the 
two  establishments  agreed  upon  a  common  price  for  the  next  season 
the  Chilkats  rejected  their  terms.  Once  fifteen  cents,  always  fifteen 
cents,  they  insisted.  Chinese  and  whites  were  sent  for,  and  there  has 
l)een  trouble  nearly  every  summer  since.  The  Chilkats  naturally  ob- 
jected to  this  invasion  of  their  own-fishing  grounds,  the  seining  of  the 
river  of  every  salmon,  and  the  great  waste  and  destruction  of  other 
fish  that  are  their  main  food  supply ;  but  each  time  the  Governor  and 
tlie  man-of-war  are  summoned,  and  the  Chilkats  are  bidden  to  let  the 
white  poachers  and  their  nets  alone,  on  pain  of  punishment. 

A  trail  a  mile  and  a  half  long  leads  through  the  miry  woods  across 
to  the  site  of  the  mission  station  of  Haines,  on  Chilkoot  Inlet,  whence 
Yukon  miners  canoe  to  the  end  of  Taiya  Inlet.  Dr.  and  Mrs.  Willard 
abandoned  the  mission  a  few  years  ago  because  of  the  hostile  and  sus- 
picious actions  of  the  Indians  after  the  death  of  a  child  to  whom  they 
had  given  uicdicines. 

THE  GREAT  TRIBE  OP  THE  TLINGIT  NATION. 

The  Chilkats  and  tbe  Chilkoots,  really  one  tribe,  are  the  great 
people  of  the  Tlingit  nation.  Captain  Beardslee  says,  that  "their 
legend  is  that  originally  all  the  Tlingits  lived  in  the  Chilkat  country ; 


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94      CHILKAT   COUNTRY   AND   PASSES   TO  THE   YUKOiC. 

that  there  came  great  floods  of  ice  and  water,  the  country  grew  too 
poor  to  support  them,  and  many  emigrated  south."  No  geologist 
takes  exception  to  this  legend. 

They  have  always  been  great  grease-traders  and  middle-men,  and 
possessed  more  wealth  than  any  other  tribes.  They  were  opposed  to 
any  white  interference  with  their  trade  with  the  Tinnehs,  or  interior 
tribes,  and  for  fifty  years  successfully  resisted  the  attempts  of  traders 
and  miners  to  cross  the  passes  to  the  Yukon  basin.  The  Chilkats'  fur- 
trade  was  most  valuable  to  the  IT.  B.  Co.,  biit  its  agents  never  saw  or 
traded  directly  with  the  Tinnehs,  who  furnished  the  pelts  brought  to 
them  at  Mt.  Ldboncherc.  The  Chilkats  met  the  Tinnehs  at  the  divide 
and  bought  their  furs. 

The  Tiiuiohs  never  attempted  to  pass  the  line,  and  the  few  brought 
as  guests  were  overpowered  with  the  sights  of  the  great  villages,  the 
war  canoes,  and  the  traders'  fire-ship,  smoking  like  a  huge  pipe,  and 
moving  without  paddle  or  sail.  The  H.  13.  Co.  sold  flint-lock  muskets 
for  as  many  marten-skins  as  could  be  piled  between  stock  and  muzzle, 
and  the  fashion  in  gun-barrels  progressed  until  the  huntsman's  weapon 
was  as  tall  as  himself.  The  white  men  made  a  profit  of  a  few  hundred 
per  cent  on  these  sales,  and  the  Chilkats  cleared  a  few  thousand  per  cent 
when  trading  with  the  Tinneh.  A  Boston  brig  visited  Lynn  Canal  in 
1807,  and  in  an  attempt  to  board  and  loot  her  70  Chilkats  were  killed. 
They  were  dreaded  by  the  smaller  tribes  below  them,  and  fought  all 
the  villages  between  their  homes  and  the  Nass  River. 

The  Chilkats  "mustered  about  2,000"  in  1869,  in  1880  there  were 
988,  and  in  1890  only  811  of  the  tribe,  the  enumerators  finding  that  one 
whole  villiige  had  been  wiped  out  by  la  grippe.  Their  winter  homes 
are  in  three  villages  up  the  Chilkat  River — HindasefuJcee,  or  Tonduatck 
("  the  village  on  the  east  bank  of  the  river"),  or  Doniwak's  village,  is  at 
the  mouth  of  the  Chilkat  River,  where  only  canoes  can  go.  Kut- 
kwuttlu-lu,  "the  place  of  gulls'' — and  no  gull  could  speak  it  more 
plainly — is  next  on  the  river,  and  then  comes  the  capital,  Klukwan, 
"old  town,"  where  Kloh-Kutz  lived  and  ruled;,  where  every  house  was 
fortified  with  bastions  and  port-holes ;  where  each  totem  had  a  splen- 
did feast-house,  with  massive  carved  columns  inside ;  and  the  grave- 
yards are  still  an  ethnologist's  paradise.  In  summer  these  villages  are 
depopulated,  the  people  flocking  to  Chilkat  and  Pyramid  Harbour  to 
sell  curios  and  spend  what  little  they  may  acquire  in  debaucheries. 
Saloons  were  openly  kept  in  1892,  the  Chilkats  were  able  to  buy  liquor 
by  the  barrel,  if  they  wished,  and  the  end  of  the  great  tribe  is  at  hand. 

Kloh-Kutz,  Chartrich,  or  Hole-in-the-Cheek,  their  great  head-chief, 
was  a  hero  worthy  of  Cooper,  and  of  the  best  type  of  Chilkat  warriors. 
His  father  was  one  of  the  band  that  went  over  and  destroyed  the  H.  B. 
Co.'s  Fort  Selkirk,  on  the  Yukon,  in  1851,  because  of  interference  with 
their  trade ;  and  Kloh-Kutz  drew  for  Professor  Davidson  the  first  map 
of  the  passes  leading  from  the  Chilkat  country  to  the  Yukon.  The 
great  astronomer  first  knew  him  in  1867,  and  when  he  returned  to 
observe  the  total  eclipse  of  the  sun  in  1869,  Kloh-Kutz  made  the  party 
his  guests,  and  established  them  in  the  council-house  at  Klu-Kwan. 


CHILKAT  COUNTRY  AND  PASSES  TO  THE  YUKON.   95 


Mr.  Seward  spent  eclipse-day  (August  8,  1860),  at  Klu-Kwan,  escorted 
up  and  down  the  river  by  war  canoes  manni  1  with  thctlower  of  Chilkat 
chivalry.  These  people  commanded  the  admiration  of  all  whites  who 
knew  them  before  the  canneries  and  miners  came,  and  contact  with 
civilization  wrought  their  rain.  Professor  Davidson  brought  first  word 
of  them,  and  made  a  vocabulary  of  their  dialect.  Lieutenant  C.  E.  S. 
Wood  visited  them  in  18'?  7,  and  recorded  much  of  interest  in  hia 
"Among  the  Thlinkits  in  Alaska  "  (Cent'.iry  'Wnj'a/ine,  July,  1882),  not- 
ing their  rope-duel,  the  counterpart  of  the  Scandinavian  heltespannare. 
Ensign  Hanus's  report  of  his  peace  mission  of  1 880  is  a  valuable  ethno- 
logical contribution,  and  is  reprinted  in  the  census  report  of  1890.  The 
Drs.  Krause  came  from  Berlin  to  study  them  as  finest  and  least  cor- 
rupted of  Tlingit  tribes,  and  their  "  Die  Thlinket  Indinner  "  is  the  most 
valuable  publication  of  its  kind.  Lieutenant  Emmons  learned  much  of 
them  before  their  decadence,  and  as  proof  of  their  friendship  was  per- 
mitted to  buy  Kloh-Kutz's  ancestral  narkheen  or  dance-blanket  after 
the  chiefs  death. 

The  Chilkats  long  knew  the  art  of  forging  copper,  and  many  fine 
specimens  of  jade  have  been  obtained  from  them.  They  were  great 
hunters  as  well  as  traders,  and  bear  and  mountain-goat  were  their  espe- 
cial game.  The  latter,  the  "  wool-bearing  antelope  "  is  found  through- 
out their  country,  and  they  have  the  credit  of  first  wearing  the  elaborate 
narkheen,  or  dance-robes,  known  as  Chilkat  blankets,  but  made  by  Hai- 
(las  and  Tsimsians  as  well.  They  wore  them  a  century  ago,  but  few  are 
made  to-day,  reduced  size,  coarse  weaving,  and  traders'  dyed  yams  ren- 
dering the  modern  ones  poor  imitations  of  the  originals.  The  old  blan- 
kets, over  2  yards  in  width,  1  yard  deep,  with  a  yard-long  fringe  border- 
ing three  sides,  were  woven  of  finely  spun  goat-wool  on  a  warp  of  fine 
cedar  threads  suspended  from  an  upright  loom  and  tautened  by  weights. 
The  designs  were  combinations  of  totemic  figures,  rigidly  convention- 
alized and  balanced,  that  recorded  the  legends  of  the  wearer's  family. 
The  claws  and  the  inverted  eyes  found  on  nearly  all  blankets  are  those 
of  Uutli,  or  Hah-tla,  the  thunder-bird  ;  the  full  face  is  the  bear  and  the 
whale's  profile  easily  recognized.  Each  pace  and  part  of  the  design 
is  woven  separately,  as  in  Japanese  tapestrv.  connected  by  occasional 
brides,  and  the  even  satin  stitch  over  and  beneath  every  two  threads 
gives  a  smooth,  fine  surface.  Black,  white,  yellow,  and  a  soft  greenish- 
blue  are  the  colours  employed,  and  in  a  particularly  tine  blanket  belong- 
ing to  a  Nass  River  chief,  a  rich  dull  red  was  employed  with  fine  effect. 
The  black  is  made  from  soot,  charcoal,  or  lignite  ;  the  yellow  from  itek* 
hone,  a  sea-weed  found  on  the  rocks ;  the  greenish-blue  from  boiling 
copper  and  this  sea-weed  together ;  and  the  red  from  spruce-juice,  berry- 
juice,  and  ochre. 

To  the  Yakon  River  and  Mining  Camps* 

Either  the  Chilkat  or  the  Chilkoot  Inlet  leads  to  passes  over  the 
continental  range,  by  which  the  head-waters  of  the  Yukon  River  may 
be  reached.    The  Drs.  Krause,  Dr.  Everette,  U.  S.  A.,  and  Mr,  E,  J, 


<>•;■ 


,  1 


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m 


t;l>i 


4.  ■:; 


96      CHILKAT   COUNTRY   AND   PA88E8   TO  THE   YUKON. 

Glave  have  explored  the  head-waters  of  the  Chilkat  and  Alsekh  Rivers. 
Mr.  (ilave  descended  the  Alsekh  to  Dry  Bay  on  the  ocean-coast  one 
season,  and  in  1H91  took  pack-horsey  over  the  Chilkat,  and  proved  the 
feasibility  of  a  pack-trail  to  the  Yukon  and  the  existence  of  suitable 
pastures  for  such  animals.  Ills  "  Pioneer  Pack-horses  in  Alaska,"  Cen- 
tury Magazine,  September,  1892,  describes  the  regions  traversed. 

The  Chilkoot  Trail,  used  by  miners  since  1880,  begins  at  Haleys, 
26  miles  from  Chilkat  Cannery;  in  12  miles  it  ascends  to  the  pass,  ami 
in  1 1  miles  more,  or  23  miles  in  all,  drops  to  Lake  Linderman  in  the  bush 
country,  beyond  the  range.  There  is  a  magnificevit  view  over  the  lake 
country  northward  from  the  summit  of  the  pass.  This  Shaseki  Pass 
of  the  natives,  Chilkoot  of  the  miners,  Perrier  of  Schwatka,  and  Taiya 
of  Ogilvie,  is  variously  estimated  from  3,378  to  4,100  ft.  above  the  sea. 
The  Lewis  River  flows  from  the  chain  of  lakes,  and  at  Fort  Selkirk, 
357  miles  from  Lake  Linderman,  unites  with  the  Pelli/,  and  forms  the 
Yukon,  which  flows  thence  i,,000  miles  to  Bering  Sea,  the  third  river 
in  size  in  North  America. 

At  the  junction  of  the  Porcupine  River  the  Yukon  touches  the  Arc- 
tic Circle,  the  true  "  Land  of  the  Midnight  Sun." 

The  mining  camps  on  Forty-mile  Criek  and  the  Tenana  receive 
accessions  from  Juneau  each  spring,  and  over  300  miners  remain  in 
camp  each  winter.  The  following  is  the  table  of  distances  from  Juneau 
to  the  Yukon  mines : 


To 


MILES. 

Haines  Mission 80 

Head  of  canoe  navigation 106 

Summit  of  Chilkoot  Pass 115 

Lake  Linderman 184 

Head  of  Lake  Bennett 129 

Boundary  line 139 

Foot  of  Lake  Bennett 1,55 

Foot  of  Caribou  Croeeing 1.58 

Foot  of  Taku  Lake 175 

Takish  House 179 

Head  of  Mud  Lake 180 

Foot  of  Lake  Marsh 800 


MILES. 

To  Head  of  caflon atT) 

"  Head  of  White  House  Rapids. .  228 

"  Takheenaliiver 240 

"  Head  of  Lake  Le  Barge a.'M; 

"  Foot  of  Lake  Le  Barge 287 

"  Hootolinqua 820 

''  Cassiar  Bar .347 

"  Little  Salmon  River 390 

"  Five  Fingers 4.'il 

"  Pelly  River 510 

''  Stewart  River 630 

"  Forty-mile 750 


Small  steamers  have  ascended  to  the  foot  of  White  Horse  Rapids. 
The  Alaska  Commercial  Company,  of  San  Francisco,  chiefly  controls 
the  fur-trade  within  United  States  lines  from  its  ocean  post  at  St. 
MichacPs.  The  miners  have  their  own  river-boat  connecting  with  an 
annual  supply  ship  from  Seattle  to  St.  Michael's.  The  country  is 
almost  destitute  of  game,  forest  fires  started  by  miners  having  driven 
animals  back  from  the  river ;  and  the  herds  of  moose  and  reindeer 
were  rapidly  exterminated  after  1867,  when  the  natives  first  obtained 
good  rifles  and  fired  at  everything  from  pure  wantonness.  The  river 
tribes  are  of  Athabascan  stock,  poor  and  degraded.  There  are  Roman 
Catholic  missions  at  Kosoriffsky  and  JVuIato,  and  an  Episcopal  mis- 
sion at  Ativik.  King  salmon  5  and  6  ft.  in  length,  and  weighing  as 
much  as  120  pounds,  are  reported  as  crowding  the  Yukon ;  red  salmon 


KON. 


ikh  Rivew. 
■coast  one 
proved  the 
of  suitable 
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at  Haleys, 
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aseki  Pass 
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630 

750 

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SKETCH  MAP  OF 

GLACIER  BAY  AND  MUIR  GLACIER 

By  HARRY  YIELDING  REID. 


LOW.   WOOOEO  LAtO 


SCALE  OF  MILES 


_ia. 


Pt 


y'*       Icy  strait 


I. Hi     M 


IM 


GLACIER   BAY. 


W 


attain  great  size,  and  wild  fowl  gather  on  the  flats  iu  incredible  num- 
Iters. 

The  head-waters  of  the  Yukon  wore  first  discovered  by  II.  B.  Co. 
men  in  1H40.  The  W.  U.  T.  Survey  explored  the  region  in  1865,  and 
Dr.  W.  II.  Dall  and  Frclerick  Whyniper,  who  wintered  there,  have  fully 
descril)cd  it  in  their  works.  Captain  Raymond,  U.  S.  A.,  made  a  mili- 
tary rcconnoissance  in  IH67,  when  he  obliged  the  11.  H.  Co.  to  remove 
t(»  British  territory.  A  pioneer  ])rospecting  party  crossed  the  Chil- 
kiiotl'ass  in  18H(>,  and  niiners  have  gone  in  increasing  numbers  each 
season  since.  Lieutenant  Schwatka  crossed  the  Chilkoot  and  rafted 
his  way  to  the  sea  in  188«.  In  188'.)  the  U.S.  Coast  and  Oeodetic 
Survey  despatched  the  Turner  and  McCJrath  parties  to  definitely  deter- 
mine the  line  of  the  141st  meridian,  the  International  Boundary  Line. 
Tlit'y  placed  their  monument  a  little  W.  of  the  mouth  of  Forty-mile 
Crock,  and  13  miles  farther  E.  than  the  Canadian  monument  erected  by 
William  Ogilvie  in  1887. 


3W.  WOODED  LAND 


(Glacier  Bay. 

Captain  Beardslee's  Glacier  Bay,  the  SUth-(/h>i-€c,  or  "great  cold 
lake  "  of  the  Hoonahs,  indents  the  northern  shore  of  Icy  Strait,  ex- 
tending over  50  miles  from  N.  W.  to  S.  E.,  and  is  from  6  to  10  miles 
wide.  There  are  strong  currents  in  the  strait  and  the  line  of  a  tcrmi- 
!ial  moraine  fjrms  a  bar  off  the  bay's  mouth.  Steamers  often  anchor 
for  the  night  in  Excursion  Inld,  a  few  miles  E.  of  the  entrance,  or  at 
BdvthWs  Bat/,  just  within  Point  Gustavus.  The  cannery  established  at 
the  latter  place  in  1883  was  closed  for  many  seasons,  but  there  is  a 
Iloonah  salmon  camp  on  the  beach  each  summer.  There  is  another 
Slimmer  fishing  camp  in  Berg  Bai/,  10  miles  above  Point  Curolm,  on 
tlie  VV.  shore.  The  natives  only  visit  the  upper  reaches  in  search  of 
tlie  hair-seal,  which  delight  to  ride  around  on  the  ice-cakes.  Bears  are 
iilmndant  in  the  forested  regions,  and  have  exterminated  the  deer,  as 
in  the  Chilkat  country,  and  the  big  white  mountain-goat  is  found  on 
all  the  heights.    No  salmon  are  found  beyond  the  islands. 


■:^m 


DISCOVERY  AND   EXPLORATION   OF  GLACIER  BAY. 

Vancouver's  ships  were  anchored  at  Port  Althorp,  on  the  N.  W. 
t^bore  of  Chichagoff  Island,  while  Whidbcy  and  Lemesurieur  explored 
the  region.  They  camped  at  Point  Carolus,  and  reported  that  to  the  N. 
and  E.  of  that  point  "  the  shores  of  the  continent  form  two  large  open 
bays  which  were  terminated  [July  12,  1794]  by  compact,  solid  moun- 
tains of  ice  rising  perpendicularly  from  the  water's  edge,  and  bounded 
to  the  N.  by  a  continuation  of  the  united,  lofty,  frozen  mountains  that 
extend  eastward  from  Mt.  Fairweather.     In  these  bays  also  were  great 


F- 

/'v':  ■.■■ 

1     '  ■ 

ii 


98 


GLACIER   BAY. 


quantities  of  broken  ice,  which,  having  been  put  in  motion  by  the 
springing  up  of  a  northerly  wind,  were  drifted  to  the  southward." 

The  "  frozen  mountains,"  as  he  termed  glaciers,  were  uncompre- 
hended  then,  and  his  scarcely  indented  coast-line  was  retained  in  Te- 
bonkoflf's  later  charts.  The  Russian  traders  named  Icy  Strait,  and, 
dreading  its  currents  and  icebergs,  kept  close  to  the  S.  shore,  and 
never  knew  the  bay. 

In  1869,  Kloh-Kutz  told  Prof.  Davidson  of  a  great  bay  full  of 
glaciers  lying  ;^0  miles  to  wu.^tward  of  the  Davidon  Glacier,  one  day's 
journey  on  snow-shoes.  In  1877  Lieutenant  C.  E.  S.  Wood,  while  seal 
and  goat  hunting  after  the  forced  abandonment  of  Mr.  Charles  Tay- 
lor's plan  to  climb  Mt.  St.  Elias,  canoed  about  this  "  great  bay  20 
miles  8.  E.  of  Mt.  Fairweather,"  and  crossed  by  the  Muir  Glacier  to 
Chilkat  *  In  October,  1879,  the  glaciers  were  really  discovered  and 
made  known  to  the  world  by  John  Muir,  the  California  geologist,  who 
had  before  that  discovered  the  residual  glaciers  of  the  Sierras.  He  ca- 
noed its  length  with  the  Rev.  Hall  Young,  and  spent  e.  few  days  f  near 
the  Pacific  Glacier,  and  lectured  that  w  inter  about  "  the  Fairweather 
glaciers."  In  July,  1880,  Mr.  Muir  returned  alone  and  spent  several 
weeks  exploring  and  enjoying  the  glacier  afterward  named  in  his 
honour.  Later  in  July,  Captain  L.  A.  Beardslee,  U.  S.  N.,  entered 
the  bay  in  the  trading  ■'teamer  Favourite,  accompanied  by  Cozian,  the 
famous  Russian  pilot,  who  had  never  heard  of  the  bay  before,  and  by 
Dick  Willoughby,  who  was  living  in  a  Hoonah  village  in  Cross  Sound. 
Captain  Beardslee  went  as  far  as  Willoughby  Island,  when  fog  shut 
down  and  the  owner  of  the  chartered  steamer  insisted  on  returning. 
He  charted  the  lower  part  of  the  bay,  and  by  dint  of  persistent  argu- 
ment had  the  name  of  Glacier  Bay  accepted  by  the  Coast  Survey.  He 
gave  a  tracing  of  his  chart  to  Captain  James  Carroll,  who  took  the 
mail  st''amer  Idaho  up  the  bay  in  July,  1883,  found  the  glacier  John 
Mui'-  had  described,  and  named  both  inlot  and  ice-stream  for  him. 

Tourists  have  been  taken  to  Muir  Glacier  by  that  same  course 
every  summer,  and  the  next  discoveries  in  the  bay  were  made  by  Cap- 
tain Carroll  in  August,  1892,  when  he  took  the  Queen  to  the  front  of 
the  Pacific  Glacier,  and  found  the  picturesque  and  unsuspected 
Johns  Hopkins,  Rendu,  and  Carroll  Glaciers  as  named  by  Prof. 
Reid.    The  Coast  Survey  has  not  yet  (1893)  charted  the  bay. 

INDIAN  TRADITIONS. 

The  Hoonahs  could  not  tell  anything  of  the  glacier  that  the  scored 
hillsides,  the  windrows  of  old  terninal  moraines,  whether  as  islands  c 
shoals,  did  not  more  plainly  declare.  They  feared  and  kept  away 
from  the  region  fraught  with  terrors  and  dangers,  and  only  seal  and 
goat  hunters  ventured  near.  They  say  that  in  their  "  fathers'  time" — 
an  indeterminate  period,  as  often   50  as  250  years  before — the  ice 

*  See  Century  Magazine,  July,  1 882. 

f  See  N.  P,  folder  Alaska,  by  John  Muir. 


GLACIER   BAY. 


90 


reached  to  Bartlett's  Bay.  About  1860  it  was  in  line  with  Willoughby 
Island.  "  I^ong,  long  ago "  the  glacier  advanced  and  swept  away 
Klcnishawshiki,  "  the  city  on  the  sand  at  the  base  of  the  mountains," 
where  the  Beardslee  Islands  now  rise.  "  It  came  down  in  a  day  and  it 
(lid  not  go  away  in  ten  years,"  they  say,  telling  how  the  ice  floods  de- 
scended, plowed  up  their  fields,  destroyed  their  houses,  as  the  Gorner 
glacier  once  devastated  its  valley.  Again,  a  great  wave  rushed  in 
from  the  ocean,  swept  away  the  village  near  Bartlett  Bay,  mowed  down 
the  forests  with  icebergs,  and  left  no  living  thing.  They  remember, 
loo,  that  a  glacier  once  crept  down  and  dammed  up  their  best  salmon 
stream.  Two  slaves  were  ofTcred  up,  and  Sitth-too- Yehk  relented,  the 
barrier  molted,  and  the  tycc  gaily  leaped  again. 


SCIENTISTS'  CAMPS. 

In  1886,  Prof.  G.  Frederick  Wrighf,  of  Oberlin,  Ohio,  Rev.  J.  L. 
Patton,  of  Greenville,  Mich.,  and  Mr.  Prentiss  Baldwin,  of  Cleveland, 
camped  for  a  month  on  the  E.  moraine,  two  miles  below  the  ice  front. 
P.y  observations  made  on  pinnacles  of  ice  fixed  in  memory.  Prof. 
Wright  figured  an  advance  of  70  ft.  a  day,  and  included  the  results  of 
his  studies  in  the  first  chapters  of  The  Ice  Af,:,  in  North  America  (D. 
Api)leton  &  Co.,  New  Yorl:). 

In  1890,  John  Muir  camped  for  three  months  on  the  east  moraine, 
JDineil  by  Prof.  Henry  Fielding  Reid,  of  the  Case  School  of  Applied 
Sciences,  Cleveland,  Ohio,  who  had  associated  with  him  Messrs.  II.  P. 
Cashing,  H.  M.  MoBride,  R.  L.  Casement,  C.  A.  Adams,  and  J.  F. 
Morse.  They  built  a  substantial  cabin  a  half  mile  below  the  ice  wall 
with  a  noble  chimney  of  glacier-cut  stones  cemented  with  glacier  mud, 
ar.d  fioni  this  home  station  explored  every  part  and  arm  of  the  gla- 
cior.  They  miipped  the  glacial  region  by  plane  table  from  the  higher 
sta  i  ms.* 

Prof.  Reid  measured  his  base-line  on  the  west  moraine  and  trian- 
prnlated  the  heights  of  his  stat'\)ns ;  a  line  of  red  and  black  flags  was 
sot  across  the  living  stream,  and  daily  observations  taken  from  sta- 
tion E  on  the  ridge  of  Mt.  Wight  and  from  K  on  the  opposite  spur,  3 
miles  apart.  The  result  of  this  ca-eful  work  reduced  the  glacier's  pace 
to  7,  8,  and  10  ft.  a  day  in  mid-stream. f  The  little  company  were  a 
board  of  geographic  names  and  .iptly  baptized  the  landmarks  found  on 
the  map,  and  their  work  is  accepted  as  final  and  exact  by  all  scientists 
and  specialists. 

In  1891  a  pleasure  party  of  seven,  including  the  artist,  T.  J.  Rich- 
ardson, Mr.  C.  S.  Johnson,  a  hunter  of  big  game,  two  ladies,  a  maid 


*  See  "Studies  of  Muir  Glacier  in  Alaska,"  by  Henry  Fielding  Reid, 
National  Geographic  Magazine,  March,  1892.  "Notes  on  the  Muir 
(! lacier,"  by  JH.  P.  Cushing,  American  Geologist,  October,  1891,  and 
M'lrch,  1893. 

f  The  Mer  de  Glace  advances  33  inches  a  day,  the  Aletsch  19 
inches,  the  Svartescn  12  inches,  and  the  Selkirk  Glacier  12  inches. 


m 


100 


GLACIER  BAY. 


and  Bmall  boy,  made  the  cabin  a  summer  home.  In  1892  Prof.  Reid 
devotad  another  season  to  mapping,  exploring,  and  studying  ice  move- 
ment. 

Itinerary  of  the  Bay  and  Inlet. 

The  slores  of  Glacier  Bay  arc  densely  forested  for  20  miles 
above  the  entrance.  The  Bcardalce  Islands,  crests  of  so  many  tcrrainiil 
moraines  are  low,  green  gardens  that  successively  illustrate  the 
stages  of  afforestation.  Wdloughby  Island,  a  solid  limestone  mass  3^ 
miles  long,  from  a  half  to  three-quarters  of  a  mile  wide,  and  1,500 
ft.  high,  named  for  the  old  Alaska  prospector,  narks  the  gateway 
to  the  glacial  region,  Francis  Island,  named  for  the  Govern- 
ment pilot,  and  the  site  of  palaeozoic  fossil  remains,  lies  N.  \V.  of  Wil- 
loughby  Island,  close  to  the  some  western  shore.  Geikie  Inlet,  which 
opens  from  the  W,  shore  just  above  Francis  Island,  holds  the  Geikit 
and  the  Wood  (Lieut.  C.  E.  S.)  Glaciers  at  the  end  of  its  long  :  ^ck 
cutting. 

Mt.  La  Pb'ome,  11,300  ft.,  Mt.  Crillon,  '5,900,  and  Mt.  Fair- 
weather,  15,500  ft.,  are  visible  from  the  entrance  of  the  bay,  and  the 
snows  of  the  Crillon  and  Fairweather  summits  feed  the  great  glaciers 
that  slope  from  their  heights  to  the  bay.  Mt.  Fairweather  shows 
the  same  summit  outline  as  3It.  Rainier  and  Mt.  St.  Elian,  and  this 
triple-crowned  peak,  the  sharply  cut  Gable  Mountain  and  the  attend- 
ant white  host,  with  every  foot  of  their  elevation  from  sea-level  to 
summit  visil)le,  complete  one  o^'  the  sublimest  mountain  views 
in  the  world.  Of  the  great  gla  iers  pouring  to  the  upper  bay,  the 
Geikie,  the  Hugh  Miller,  and  the  Pacific  were  named  by  their  first 
visitor,  John  Muir,  and  the  Wood,  the  Charpentier,  the  Johns  Hopkins, 
the  Rendu,  and  the  Carroll  Glaciers  by  Prof.  Reid.  This  end  of  the 
bay  is  usually  so  blocked  by  ice  that  canoes  rarely,  and  only  one  steam- 
er, have  navigated  it.  There  is  a  large  bay  on  the  E.  shore,  below  the 
mouth  of  Muir  Inlet.  The  last  forest  may  be  noted  at  this  point,  a 
moss-hung,  dark,  mysterious  [dace,  among  whose  venerable  spruces 
John  Muir  found  his  richest  botanical  field. 


■E 


a:. 


Muir  Inlet  and  the  Great  ntuir  Glacier. 

Mnir  Inlet,  5  miles  long  and  If  to  3  miles  wide,  opens  on  the  E. 
shore  20  miles  above  Bartlett  Bay.  It  stretches  due  N.  and  S.,  the 
Muir  Glacier  walling  the  end  with  a  line  of  ice-cliffs  9,200  h.  ";" 
If  mile  in  length,  rising  100  and  250  ft.  from  the  water,  and  jilcndin;j. 


Ci  !' 


'rof.  Reid 
ice  move- 


20  miles 
i  termiiiiil 
trate  tlio 
e  mass  3^ 
and  1,500 
!  gateway 
!  Govcni- 
5?.of  Wil- 
let,  whicli 
he  Geikit 
long  :  'ck 

[t.  Fair- 

^,  and  the 
t  glaciers 
ler  shows 
,  and  this 
le  attend- 
a-lcvel  to 
,in  views 
r  bay,  the 
heir  first 
Hopkins, 
nd  of  the 
me  steam- 
below  tho 
s  point,  a 
e  spruces 


on  the  E. 

id  S.,  the 

>0     ft.     ^T 

uitcudin;^. 


if  * . 


■                              '1' 

it-* 


t^. 


Jiil 


11- 

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n  J  4 1;,' 

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',ll  1 

GLACIER   BAY. 


101 


it  is  believed,  some  900  ft.  below  the  surface  of  tho  sea  in  a  longr,  plough- 
shaped  forefoot.  The  vast  ice  plain  slopes  back  at  a  grade  of  100  ft. 
to  the  mile  to  the  mountains,  10  and  13  miles  distant  from  the  inlet. 
Tiie  Muir  Glacier,  58''  50'  N.,  and  136'  5'  W.,  drains  an  area  of 
Si>0  square  miles  The  actual  ice  feurfaro  covers  about  350  square 
miles,  the  mass  of  ii  35  miles  long  and  10  to  15  miles  wide,  lying  but 
a  few  hundred  feet  above  sea-level.  It  is  fed  by  26  tril)utary  streams, 
7  of  which  are  over  a  mile  in  width.  If  all  their  affluents  were  named 
and  counted,  as  in  Switzerland,  the  Muir  might  boast  200  branches  or 
glaciers  in  its  system.  The  mountain  gateway,  2^  miles  wide,  through 
which  it  pours  to  the  sea,  is  formed  by  spurs  of  Mt.  Case  (5,510  ft.) 
and  Mt.  Wright  (4,944  ft.)  on  the  E.,  and  a  spur  of  the  sharply  cut 
Pyramid  Peak  on  the  W.  All  the  mountains  immediately  surround- 
ing the  glacier  average  from  4,000  to  6,000  ft.  in  height.  The  main 
stieam  of  the  Muir  flows  from  the  X.  W.,  rising  in  7icves  40  miles 
distant.  The  main  current  of  this  magnificently  crevassed  and  broken 
ice  pours  through  the  great  plain  at  a  rate  of  8  to  10  ft.  a  day.  All 
efforts  to  cross  it  within  10  miles  back  from  the  water  front  have 
failed."  * 

Seven  medial  moraines  stretch  away  in  dark  fan-rib  lines  from  the 
front,  rising  in  terraces  on  the  ice  and  indicating  the  course  and  source 
of  chief  tributaries.  Lateral  moraines  extend  in  crumbling  blufl's  and 
gravel  terraces  for  3  miles  down  either  side  of  the  inlet. 

Ships  do  not  approach  the  ice  wall  nearer  than  an  eighth  of  a  mile, 
because  of  the  masses  of  ice  falling  from  its  face  with  terriiic  noise 
and  agitation  of  the  water,  and  of  submarine  bergs  detached  from  the 
sunken  forefoot  and  rising  to  the  surface  with  tremendous  force. 
Soundings  of  86  and  120  fathoms  have  been  made  within  100  yards  of 

*  Of  the  Norwegian  glaciers,  which  may  be  most  fairly  used  for 
comparison  with  the  Muir,  the  Jostedalbrae,  the  largest  glacier  in  Eu- 
rope, I'es  3  X.  of  the  Muir,  at  an  elevation  of  3,(M)0  ft.  above  the  sea, 
ami  covers  470  square  miles.  It  is  an  ice-cap  on  the  top  of  a  range, 
with  live  arms  flowing  down  and  one  reaching  within  150  ft.  of  sea-level. 
The  Svartisen,  the  show  glacier  of  the  Norway  coast,  8  X.  of  the 
Muir,  and  on  the  line  of  the  Arctic  Circle,  is  an  ice  mantle  44  miles 
long  and  12  to  25  miles  wide,  occupying  a  plateau  4,00(»  ft.  above  the 
sea.  The  arm  in  Melii,  visited  by  Xorth  Cape  tourists,  does  not  reach 
tide-water.  Tho  Swiss  glaciers,  all  lying  from  4,n00  and  6,0(>(>  ft. 
aliove  the  sea  are  like  those  of  Mt.  Rainier,  and  in  no  way  to  l)e  com- 
pared to  the  Muir,  20  of  whos'?  arms  each  exceed  the  Mer  de  (Jlace  in 
size. 


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if  in      if 

i'.-  ••'^''' 

102 


GLACIER  BAY. 


the  ice  wall.  Every  break  reveals  surfaces  of  intensest  clear  blue  ice, 
which  quickly  weathers  to  opaque  whiteness  and  coarse  granular  snow. 
The  enormous  pressure  condenses  the  original  snow  flakes  to  this  clear, 
transparent  ice,  which  is  often  umber  and  darkest  green  with  moraiiial 
matter.  Bergs  200  ft.  in  length,  60  and  10  ft.  high,  only  one  sevoiitli 
of  a  berg  being  visible,  are  often  seen  near  the  front,  but  break  apart 
and  grind  together  as  they  sail  down  the  bay,  and  avalanchos  of  loose 
particles  cover  the  bay  with  "  mush  ice  "  for  miles.* 

Steamers  usually  anchor  one  fourth  of  a  mile  below  the  E.  end  of 
the  ice  wall.  P.  C.  S.  S.  Co.'s  ships  usually  remain  six  or  eight  hours, 
taking  advantage  of  the  tide  in  entering  and  leaving  the  bay  when 
possible  and  landing  their  passengers.  Vessels  of  British  register  can- 
not land  passengers,  owing  to  U.  S.  customs  regulations.  A  well- 
built  trail  and  board  walk  lead  over  the  bluff  and  the  quicksands  of 
glacial  mud  in  the  moraine  to  the  surface  of  the  ice,  which  is  there  a 
rolling  white  prairie,  over  which  a  regiment  of  cavalry  might  deploy, 
and  where  future  tourists  will  travel  on  sleds,  or  even  horses.  There 
uve  no  dangers  to  require  the  ice-axe,  rope,  creepers,  or  extraordinary 
costumes,  unless  the  traveller  goes  out  of  his  way  and  seeks  them  in 
the  crevassed  regions  of  mid-stream.  Rubber  shoes  are  a  necessity, 
but  are  quickly  cut  by  the  sharp  ice  crystals. 

The  Dirt  Glacier,  fill-ig  the  canon  between  Mt.  Ca.se  and  Mt. 
Wright,  is  a  treacherous  place  full  of  sink-holes  and  quicksands  of 
glacier  mud,  where  boulders  reel  and  sink  beneath  one,  and  the  fine 
"  mineral  paste  and  mountain  meal "  make  a  sticky,  slippery  com- 
pound that  hardens  like  cement.  It  is  worth  walking  far  out  on  tlie 
ice  to  see  the  splendid  White  Glacier,  4  miles  long  nd  a  half  mile 
wide,  sweeping  from  the  E.  side  of  Mt.  Case  with  a  black  serpent  of  a 
medial  moraine  curving  down  its  dazzling  slope.  The  eastern  arm  has 
almost  no  motion,  and  melting  10  ft.  of  its  surface  each  year  is  fast 
uncovering  nnnataks^  or  islands  in  the  ice. 

The  granite  knobs  peeping  through  the  ice  abreast  of  Mt.  Case,  3 
miles  from  the  beach,  are  known  as  the  "  Dumplings  "  ;  the  red  granite 
nunatak,  a  mile  beyond,  at  the  edge  of  the  swift-moving  crevassed  iee, 
is  the  tourist's  "  Mouse,''  800  ft.  in  height.  The  "  Rat,""  4  miles  across, 
on  the  opposite  bank  of  the  raging  ice  torrent,  is  1,855  ft.  Both  are 
easily  climbed  by  crevices  or  cafions  in  their  sides  and  command  mag- 

*  Captain  C.  L.  Hooper  notes  that  in  the  Pacific  arctic,  off  the  Si- 
berian and  Alaska  coast,  20  ft.  is  the  average  of  the  highest  ice  met. 


t**-;-'  ''  ii' 


i:'!!    . 


GLACIER  BAY. 


103 


nificent  views  of  the  glacier,  its  branches,  the  surrounding  mountains, 
and  the  inlet.  The  Piouse  is  easily  reached  on  uteamer  days  by  good 
walkers,  who,  keeping  well  to  the  right  until  past  the  Dirt  Glacier, 
may  follow  an  air-line  to  its  base  without  having  to  turn  aside  for  a 
crevasse.  There  are  lakes,  blooming  epilobium,  and  tattered  driftwood 
in  its  recesses.  The  whole  surface  is  brilliantly  polished,  and  ava- 
lanches of  pebbles  ar'^  freiiuent.  A  cairn  on  the  !iighest  point  is 
Prof.  Reid's  flag  st.tion  II,  and  cards  of  climbers  will  be  found  in 
tins  and  bottles.  \  field  glas«  wilJ  show  the  ancient  spruce-trees  grow- 
ing on  Tree  Mount,  2,700  ft.,  and  9  miles  due  E.,  a  "  Foret,"  correspond- 
ing to  the  "Jardin"  of  the  Mer  de  Glace.  The  triple-crowned  it/?. 
Young  is  16  miles  distant,  and  on  its  other  side  are  the  feeders  of  the 
Davidson  Glacier  in  Lynn  Canal.  End'wott  Luke  at  its  base,  and  Berg 
Luke  N.  of  it,  are  miniatures  of  the  glacier's  inlet  front,  replicas  of  the 
Margellen  Zee  in  the  Aletsch  Glacier  which  moved  Prof.  Tyndall  to 
such  raptures.  These  lakes  are  not  seen  from  the  Mouse,  but  a 
glass  shows  the  Girdled  Glacier.  The  extraordinary  moraine  with 
two  ends  and  no  present  beginning  runs  from  the  Mouse  to  the 
brink  of  the  ice-cliffs  on  Berg  Lake,  a  glacial  phenomenon  discovered 
by  Prof.  Reid.  Snow  Dome,  Red  Mt.,  Black  Mt.,  and  Gable  Mt.,  are 
easily  identified  on  the  N.,and  magnificent  ice  falls,  chains  of  nunataka 
and  eddies  over  uncovering  islands,  may  be  studied,  while  at  one's  feet 
is  the  broken,  tempestuous  ice-stream,  so  evidently  in  action  that  one 
listens  for  its  roar  and  to  see  the  great  ice  waves  comb  over  and  scat- 
ter their  spray.  The  silence  is  profound,  and  the  north  wind  that 
blows  perpetually  with  the  current  of  the  ice-stream  makes  no  sound. 

The  Morse,  Cashing,  JUcBride,  Casement,  and  Adams 
(tlaciers  were  named  by  Prof.  Reid  as  a  deserved  recognition  of  the 
excellent  work  of  those  members  of  his  staff  of  1890  in  exploring  these 
main  tributaries  of  the  Muir. 

The  Lateral  JHoraines. 

It  is  an  easy  walk  up  the  east  beach  to  the  base  of  the  ice-cliffs 
whose  wings  override  the  gravel-bed  of  an  older  moraine,  and  hold 
many  spruce  and  alder  twigs.  As  falling  bergs  send  great  waves 
across  the  inlet,  it  is  a  little  dangerous  to  follow  the  beach  at  high  tide. 
Six  Hoonah  hunters  were  swept  from  the  narrow  footway  by  a  berg 
wave  a  few  seasons  since,  and  incautious  visitors  have  many  times  been 
drenched  knee- deep.    There  are  quicksands  at  the  water's  edge,  and 


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>■(■'  ■ 


104 


GLACIER   BAY. 


the  crumbling  bluffs  and  melting  iee-cliffs  launch  tonw  of  sand,  bouldofs 
and  ice-blocks  without  warning.  A  roaring  torrent  emerges  from  nn 
ice  caSon  at  the  end  of  the  beach  and  prevents  (1891-'92-'98)  access 
to  caves  at  the  base  of  the  ice  wall  as  formerly.  Many  sulighuiu] 
streams  boil  up  at  the  base  ot  these  cliffs,  and  these  fierce  torrents  fill 
the  air  with  a  steady  undeitone  like  the  boom  of  the  Yosemite  Kail. 
The  tide-fall  of  15  ft.  leaves  a  dark-blue  base-line  by  which  one  may  esti- 
mate the  heights  above. 

A  considerable  stream,  the  East  Rh'c)\  drains  the  extreme  flank  of 
thg  glacier,  and  reaches  the  inlet  a  half  mile  below  the  ice.  On  its 
farther  bank  there  is  a  large  flat  covered  with  driftwood,  mainly 
spruce,  and  hi  hollows  in  the  gravel  terraces  there  are  the  stumps  of 
large  spruce-trees,  whose  fringed  fibres  tell  of  an  overswecping  ice 
sheet.  Streams  are  uncovering  other  buried  spruce  groves,  and  one 
such  is  disclosed  on  the  beach  below  high-tide  mark.  Shrimps,  sli(ll,'« 
of  spider  crabs,  and  sea-weed  are  found  on  this  beach.  The  whole 
perpendicular  front  of  Mt.  Wright  is  scored  and  grooved  to  a  heij:lit 
of  2,000  ft.,  which,  with  the  spruce  and  alder  stumps  found  in  the 
older  moraine  beneath  the  ice-wings,  prove  that  the  glacier  has  ad- 
vanced and  receded  in  times  past  with  different  climatic  conditions. 
The  whole  glacial  basin  was  possibly  once  a  forest,  and  salmon  streams 
frolicked  in  all  the  tributary  canons.  At  another  time  there  was  one 
vast  sea  of  ice  over  all  the  region,  and  the  battlemented  summit  of  ^It. 
Wright  was  but  a  nunatak. 

On  the  Wed  Moraine  the  draining  stream  is  much  larger,  and  a 
tributary  has  uncovered  a  buried  spruce  forest  whose  stumps  are  Kt 
and  15  ft.  in  height.  The  rounded  arch  of  the  tunnel  from  which  tlie 
stream  flowed  in  1S83  has  fallen  in,  and  it  is  a  long  and  wearisome  ap- 
proach to  the  surface  of  the  ice  on  that  side. 

THE  RATE  OF  RECESSION. 

Rain  weathers  and  breaks  away  the  ice  most  rapidly,  and  during  a 
close  watch  maintained  by  the  writer  in  July  and  August,  1891,  it  did 
not  seem  that  the  stages  of  the  tide  had  any  connection  with  the  fall 
of  ice.  On  many  warm,  clear  days,  when  a  hot  sun  fell  upon  the  ice 
front  for  16  and  18  hours  continuously,  there  was  no  sound.  After 
days  of  silence  came  tremendous  displays,  one  quarter  and  one  third  of 
the  long  wall  falling  away  at  once.  These  falls  often  occurred  in  the 
middle  of  the  night  and  frequently  at  daybreak,  contraction  in  the 
colder  hours  seeming  to  free  most  bergs. 

By  photographic  ev'dence  the  glacier  receded  more  than  1,000  yards 


'  ;4' 


GLACIER   BAY. 


106 


between  Prof.  Wright's  visit  of  1880  and  Prof.  Reid's  first  camp  in 
1890.  Photographs  taken  by  the  writer  in  1891  showed  a  retreat  of 
SOO  yards  in  the  next  year.  Prof.  Muir  recognized  a  retreat  of  a  mile 
between  his  visits  of  1880  and  1890,  and  the  writer  was  as  much  be- 
wildered by  the  marked  changes  occurring  between  1883  and  1890, 

The  Ascent  of  Mt.  Wright,  to  the   Hanging   Gardens  and 
Hlonntain-Caoat  Pastures. 

By  crossing  the  East  River,  following  the  tributary  stream  that  de- 
scends the  steep  ravine  on  the  right,  an(i  climbing  by  the  boulder-filled 
crevices  on  its  north  wall  the  tourist  may  reach  the  long  spur  of  Mt. 
Wright.  Professor  Reid's  cairn  and  flag  Station  E,  at  the  brink  over- 
looking the  glacier's  front  wall,  command  a  magnificent  view.  Station  E 
may  be  reached  in  two  and  a  half  hours  from  the  landing,  when  the  bridge 
near  the  cabin  allows  East  River  to  be  ci,>.  sed  at  that  point.  An  easy 
slope  through  knee-deep  lupin-beds,  over  acres  of  bryanthus,  butter- 
cups, forget-me-nots,  violets,  blue-bells,  gentians,  geums,  asters,  and 
golden-rod  leads  from  Station  E  to  a  3,000-foot  terrace  extending 
south  a  couple  of  miles  and  commanding  views  of  all  the  inlet  and 
lower  bay,  out  to  the  ChichagoflE  shore.  This  region  is  the  favourite  pas- 
ture of  mountain-goats ;  lioof-marks  and  tufts  of  wool  are  seen  all  the 
way,  ptarmigan  run  beside  one,  and  marmots  whistle  on  every  side. 
During  the  weeks  the  writer  spent  at  Muir  Glacier  in  1891,  the  hunters 
kept  the  camp  larder  well  supplied  from  this  lofty  game  preserve.  The 
view  from  this  second  terrace  (3,000  ft.),  Flag  Station  V,  is  best  in  the 
early  morning,  when  Mis.  Cnllon,  La  Peroune,  and  Fainoeather  are  clearly 
out  on  the  western  sky.  The  Fairweather  group  hides  any  view  of  Mt. 
St.  Elias,  100  miles  distant.  Station  E  commands  the  finest  view  of 
Mt.  Case's  dark,  red-purple,  limestone  mass,  its  velvety  patches  of 
vegetation  and  its  jewelled  glacier  gleaming  high  on  its  shoulder. 

By  photographs  taken  from  Station  E,  in  1890-'91-'92,  Professor 

Held  has  been  able  to  note  very  closely  the  rate  of  recession.     Tourists 

sufficiently  interested  in  glacial  phenomena  to  climb  to  that  outlook 

with  cameras  may  assist  this  study  by  forwarding  such  pictures,  with 

dates  attached,  to  Professor  H.  F.  Reid,  care  of  Secretary  of  National 

(ieographic  Society,  Washington,  D.  C.    Photographs  from  V,  from  M,  on 

the  beach  close  to  Muir's  cabin,  and  from  A  B  on  the  bluff  S.  of  the 

mouth  of  West  River  on  the  west  side  of  the  Inlet,  will  also  assist  in  the 

record. 

Auroras^  Mirage,  and  the  Phantom  City, — Brilliant  auror'il  displays 
8 


Wttr  T 


■ 


fi. 


A' 


lOG 


OLACIER    BAY. 


arc  often  witnessed  in  August,  and  ininigcs  frequently  appear.  My 
refraetion  the  ice-floes  arc  often  nuignified  into  iee-eliffs  1,000  ft. 
high,  apparently  barring  a  ship's  retreat  southward.  The  so-ciiUcd 
rhantorn  or  Silent  City  was  a  hoax  of  Diek  Willoughby's  in  iHH'.t. 
Thousands  of  prints  from  a  cloudy  negative  of  Bristol,  England,  were 
sold,  upon  his  statement  that  he  had  seen  and  photographed  the  city 
from  Glacier  Bay. 

Amateur  photographers  will  find  it  almost  impossible  to  secure  a 
sharj)  negative  of  a  mirage.  The  lines  of  glimmering  ice-cliflfs  leave 
no  definition  or  shadow,  waver  and  fade  (|uickly.  The  reflected  liglit 
from  these  glaciers  and  snow-fields  misleads  even  professional  photctg- 
raphers  to  over-expose  their  negatives.  The  smaller  stops  in  a  lens 
are  often  sufficient  for  an  instantaneous  ex[)or'ure,  and  sueii  exposures 
may  be  successfully  made  with  ordinary  stops  on  cloudy  days.  In 
weak  sunlight  the  lens  should  be  stopped  down,  and  in  the  developing- 
room  the  bromide  should  be  in  hand. 


j. 

'      ■      .' 

/ " .' 

-'  *  ' 

%'-'^ 


0 


On  the  mainland  Shore  of  Cross  Sound. 

'  Dundas  Bay  and  Taylor  Bay^  W.  of  Glacier  Bay,  contain  tide- 
water glaciers  and  are  favourite  sealing-grounds  of  the  natives,  who 
bitterly  resented  the  incursion  of  Tsimsian  seal-poachers  in  188u. 
The  Tsimsiaus  were  driven  off,  but  threatened  to  return  with  9o 
canoes  and  exterminate  the  Hoonahs.  By  the  intervention  of  Captain 
Beaviislee,  U.  S.  N.,  and  Dr.  Powell,  Indian  Comraissioner  for  British 
Columbia,  an  impending  war  of  all  the  coast  tribes  was  averted,  and 
the  Tsimsians  were  threatened  with  severe  punishment  if  any  more 
poaching  should  be  reported.  The  glacier  in  Taylor  Bay  was  visited 
by  Mr.  Charles  Taylor  and  Lieutenant  C.  E.  S.  Wood  in  1877,  and 
explored  by  John  Mute  in  1880.  Its  front  and  slope  are  seen  at  long 
range  from  ships  passing  through  Cross  Sound. 

The  Chichagofl'  Island  Shores. 

Chichagoff  Island,  named  for  the  Russian  navigator  who  first 
attempted  to  find  a  Northeast  Passage  from  the  Atlantic  to  the  Pacific, 
is  least  known  of  the  greater  islands  of  the  archipelago.  It  is  about  7" 
miles  long,  with  an  average  breadth  of  40  miles.  Cross  Sound,  lead- 
ing in  from  the  ocean  on  the  X.,  was  named  by  Captain  Cook  on  Holy 
Cioss  Day,  Jlay  3,  1778.  Port  Althorp,  within  its  entrance,  was  Van- 
couver's anchorage  for  several  weeks  in   1793.     Idaho  Inlet,  E.  of 


til  kn .  -  . 


O LACIER   BAY. 


107 


Port  Althorp,  was  discovered  by  Captain  Janios  Carroll,  July,  1SH;{, 
upon  Dick  Wiiloiij^'hhy's  assurance  that  it  was  a  Itroad  fortv-fatliom 
channel  Icadinp;  to  the  open  ocean  N.  of  Salisbury  Sound,  freipiently 
traversed  by  himself.  The  Jilnho  ran  agrttund  a  few  miles  from  the 
entrance  in  waters  alive  with  salmon  and  flounders,  between  shores 
where  deer  wandered  in  plain  sight,  and  many  l)ear-tracks  could  be 
seen.     A  saltery  built  in  188t  was  closed  after  a  few  years. 

The  Hoonahs  {/loon,  "the  north  wind,"  and  m/i,  "lake"),  inhabit- 
ing Chichagoff  Island  and  the  shores  of  Icy  Strait,  have  l)een  longest 
preserved  from  contact  with  white  civilization.  They  have  had  a 
liad  name  from  earliest  times.  In  18<)2  they  seized  the  II.  \i.  Co.'s 
ship  Ijdbouchere  at  Swanson's  Harbour,  imprisoned  the  captain  and 
crew,  and  looted  the  vessel  completely.  It  was  not  the  M.  \i.  C<».'s 
policy  to  retaliate  and  injure  the  fur-trade,  and  they  passed  by  Iloonah 
anchorages  for  several  seasons.  Ambassadors  l)esought  the  resump- 
tion of  trade,  and  when  the  "  fire  canoe  "  came  again  the  whole  tribe 
joined  in  the  water  parade,  the  songs  and  dances  of  peace,  filled  the 
air  with  the  eagle  down  of  peace,  and  carpeted  the  deck  with  potlateh 
otter-skins.  In  ISvi"^  the  chief  in  his  war-canoes  met  the  U.  S.  revenue 
cutter  Lincoln,  but  was  not  allowed  on  board.  "  You  come  ley  Strait. 
Me  give  you  big  fight !  "  the  chief  bawled  in  Chinook  as  he  left. 

The  Hoonahs  numbered  about  1,000  in  18H1».  In  1880  there  were 
1)08  enumerated,  and  in  1890  only  69<).  Their  chief  village  of  Kom- 
tokton  in  Port  Frederick,  has  been  known  as  Iloonah  P.  ().  sinci-  the 
mission  and  Government  day  school  was  established.  It  numbered 
i;i8  inhabitants  in  1890.  The  smaller  village  of  Klookukhoo  has  but 
I")  inhabitants.  Lieutenant  C.  E.  S.  Wood,  in  the  Century  Magazine, 
July,  1882,  and  Captain  Beardslee,  in  his  Forest  and  Stream  letters  of 
1878-'79,  have  given  interesting  descriptions  of  Komtv.>kton,  the  Hoo- 
nahs, and  their  legends. 

The  finest  halibut  grounds  in  the  archipelago  arc  those  ofT  Point 
Adolphus. 

As  soon  as  the  ice  breaks,  in  March,  a  hundred  canoes  are  seci 
fishing  among  the  floes.  Captain  Beardslee  and  one  other  angler 
'•aught  47  halibut  averaging  40  pounds  each  in  one  hour  in  July,  after 
the  regular  halibut  season.  One  Iloonah  managed  the  canoe,  cluV>bed 
and  gatfed  the  fish,  caught  with  salmon  bait  and  native  tackle.  Tlin- 
uit  halibut  hooks,  lines,  and  clubs  are  most  ingeniously  and  often 
richly  decorated.  The  lines  are  made  of  the  giant  kelp  {nercocyiitis), 
which  often  grows  to  a  length  of  300  ft.  in  tide-swept  channels.  It 
is  soaked  and  bleached  in  fresh  water,  and  then  stretched,  dried, 
smoked,  and  worked  until  it  is  as  firm  as  leather  but  pliable  as  silk. 
The  foot-long  hook  is  cut  from  the  heart  of  spruce  or  cedar  roots — 


it- 1  ' 


108 


FROM   CirATIIAM   HTRAIT  TO   THE   OCEAN. 


m 


,/,!! 


r'M    " 


K  ':-» 


* ,  t ' . 


t<u 


for  the  hiilibut  can  detect  the  tnstc  of  resiii — ami  this  hook  as  well  as 
the  ehil)  are  carved  whh  the  owner's  totem  and  other  sijjnificant  dc- 
vices  bound  to  ensiirt'  the  tishcrinan'n  hick.  With  such  tackle,  a  loiii' 
fisherman  can  haul  up  and  quiet  even  a  200.i)ounder ;  but  chicken 
halibut,  weighinf^  JJO  or  40  pounds,  arc  the  choice,  and  70-pounders  the 
avei'age. 

There  is  a  canoe  portage  from  Port  Frederick  to  the  Tenakce  I'ok. 
ndfff,  leadinj;  into  Chatham  Strait.  There  are  hot  sulphur  spriuf^s  on 
the  passage,  long  resorted  to  by  the  natives,  and  a  chosen  winter  camj)- 
ground  of  miners.  There  are  also  hot  sulphur  springs  on  the  \V. 
coast  of  Chichagoff,  l)etween  Cape  Edward  and  Lisianski  Strait, 
strong  sulphur  water  bubbling  up  in  natural  rock  pools  on  the  beach. 

From  Chatham  Strait  to  the  Ocean  by  Peril  or  Po- 

gibshi  Straits. 

Peril  Straits,  the  Tlingits'  Koo-lc-tvhika  (a  dangerous  channel), 
40  miles  in  length,  bend  in  a  great  bow  from  Chatham  Strait  to  Salis- 
bury Sound,  separating  Chichagoif  and  Baranof  Islands.  It  is  a  famou.x 
landscape  reach,  and  at  the  two  narrows  there   are  strong  tidal  rapids. 

The  east  half  of  the  straits  is  a  brop.l,  smooth  water-way  for  IK 
miles,  narrowing  beyond  the  opening  of  lloonah  Sound  on  the  north 
shore.  Deadman's  Reach  is  the  smooth  stretch  on  the  Baranof 
side  before  reaching  Povrrotnoi  (Turnabout)  Maud,  a  symmetiical 
green  island  that  blocks  the  pass.  On  one  side  of  it  is  the  true  Po- 
gibshiy  or  Pcnl  Point,  and  opposite  is  the  Poison,  or  Pernicious  Cove, 
where  one  hundred  of  Baranof's  Aleut  hunters  were  killed  by  eating 
poisonous  mussels  in  1799.  For  this  reason  the  Russians  as  often 
called  them  Poffoobnoi/,  or  Pernicious  Straits.  For  the  next  3  miles  tlie 
half-mile-wide  channel  is  swept  by  strong  tidal  currents,  the  tides  from 
Chatham  Strait  and  the  open  ocean  meeting  at  these  First  or  North- 
ern Rapids.  A  half  hour  of  slack  water  intervenes  between  the 
hours  when  the  tides  race  at  eight  and  ten  knots  an  hour,  and  vessels 
are  timed  to  pass  within  that  limit  of  safety. 

The  straits  widen  beyond  the  Rapids,  and  inlets  open  magnificent 
vistas  from  the  main  canon,  whose  steep  shores  are  densely  forested 
from  tide-line  to  the  snow-line  of  the  mountains.  At  the  Second 
or  Southern  Rapids,  12  miles  beyond,  the  channel  "at  its  narrowest 
part  is  scarce  100  yards  in  width,  and  is  rendered  very  dangerous  by 
the  sunken  rocks  over  which  the  tide  rushes  in  its  strength  with  the 


m  . 


FROM   CHATHAM   STRAIT   TO   THK    OOKAX. 


100 


rt' 


sound  of  a  roaring  cataract,  the  current  often  riinniiif;  more  than  ten 
knots  an  honr.  .  .  .  For  8  miles  the  navipition  is  the  most  (iangorons 
(if  any  in  southeastern  Alanka,  except  Kootztuitioo  Inlet,  (»\ving  to  the 
strong  tide  and  the  sunken  rocks  that  obstruct  this  passage." 

Baranof  travel  sed  these  straits  in  1804,  and  Imgsdorff  wrote  an 
account  of  his  exciting  run  with  the  tiile  in  1805.  These  straits  were 
surveyed  and  Imoyeil  by  Captain  Coghlan  in  1884,  and  since  then  there 
have  not  been  any  such  disasters  as  befel  the  U.  S.  S.  Wak/dudn  and 
the  nudi  steamer  Eureka.  Tourists  going  through  at  high-water  slack, 
when  the  current  boiis  slowly,  do  not  see  nor  hear  the  bore  4  ft.  higli 
rur-hlng  by,  eddies  sucking  down,  waves  l>oiHng  up,  spar-buoys  borne 
under,  and  kelp  snapping  in  the  current,  as  at  the  turn  of  the  tides. 

Salisbury  Sound  was  named  for  Portlock's  friend,  the  noble 
Marquia  of  Salisbury,  in  1787.  The  Spaniard  (Jaliano  anchored  there, 
ill  the  Puerxo  de  los  Reniedios,  in  1775.  Captain  Cook  called  it  the  Bay 
of  Islands  in  1778,  and  the  Russians  named  it  Klokachelf  Strait.  The 
peak  of  Mt.  St.  Elias  has  been  seen  from  its  mouth.  S'  John  the  Bap- 
tist Bay,  at  its  eastern  end,  holds  beaches  and  bluflfs  of  marble  and  a 
vein  of  lignite  discovered  by  Professor  Blake  in  I8r)7. 

Neva  Strait,  leading  from  Salisbury  to  Sitka  Sotmd,  was  little  used 
ill  Russian  days  because  of  the  sunken  rocks  and  ledges  in  Wliite- 
stone  Narrows,  and  vessels  went  around  Kru/off  Island  to  avoid 
them.  Surveys  have  made  the  course  plain  and  safe,  but  as  it  can  only 
!»'  run  at  a  certain  stage  of  the  tide  by  large  steamers,  a  few  hours' 
anchorage  is  sometimes  enforced. 

Nakwaslna  Pmsage  surrounds  Halleck  Island,  and  is  a  great  resort 
of  winter  sportsmen.  It  was  recommended  as  a  site  of  a  new  military 
post  to  which  the  garrison  of  Sitka  should  be  removed.  Qi<((mnski/, 
"  the  place  where  qvass  was  brewed,"  is  the  local  name  for  the  level 
nieadows  and  the  hay  ranch  maintained  by  the  Russian  Conjpany,  and 
occupied  since  1867  by  American  settlers.  Beehive  hhtrui  is  an  un- 
mistakable landmark  at  the  southern  entrance  of  Xakwasina, 

The  entrance  to  Katliana  Bay  is  2  miles  S.,  and  within  it  there 
is  another  hay  ranch  and  a  cabin  resorted  to  by  sportsmen  for  bear, 
(leer,  duck,  geese,  grouse,  and  swan  shooting  in  the  winter.  This  Kat- 
liansky  camp  is  3  miles  in  from  the  entrance,  and  there  is  a  shaiply 
out  pyramidal  peak  as  landmark  at  the  end  of  the  valley. 

The  Bay  of  Starri  Gavan,  or  Old  Sitka,  2  miles  below  Katliana 
Bay,  is  the  site  of  Baranof  s  first  settlement,  the  Fort  Archangel  Gabriel 
established  in  1799  and  destroyed  by  the  natives  in  1802.     It  is  3  miles 


J  . 


& 


*/•: 


•I 

i 


no 


FROM   CHATHAM    STRAIT   TO   THE   OCEAN. 


N.  of  the  j)!est'nt  Sitka,  on  the  E.  shore  of  Sitka  Sound,  which  is  1 1 
miles  long  and  from  C  to  7  miles  broad,  an  island-studded  expanse 
sheltered  between  ♦he  Krnzoff  and  iJai'anof  shores. 

Baraiiof  Island  and  the  Russian  Settlements. 

Lisianski,  who  first  surveyed  them,  named  Bar.inof,  Chichaj»off, 
Knizoif,  and  Jacobi's  Islands,  and  charted  them  in  1805  as  the  Sitka 
Islands.  Baranof,  best  kn<>wn  of  any  island  in  the  archipelago,  is 
over  120  miles  long  and  about  HO  mile  wide.  Al'i  its  shore-line  hus 
not  been  surveyed,  the  interior  is  unknown  and  no  one  has  yet  (189.']) 
crossed  it.  There  is  a  cannery  at  Ked  Bay  on  the  S.  W.  shore,  but 
the  only  other  settlements  are  in  the  innuediate  neighbourhood  of 
Sitka. 

The  Russians  reached  the  Pacific  shores  oi  Siberia  in  1639,  Vitus 
rci'injjf,  by  commission  of  Peter  the  (ircat,  discovered  the  strait  sej);!- 
rating  Asia  and  America  in  iVliS,  and  in  1741,  at  tlie  behest  of  the 
Empress  Anne,  started  to  find  Yasco  da  Gania's  fabled  land,  llis  two 
ships  sepiivated  in  a  storn)  and  fo^r  about  latitude  AiV  X.  Bering  sailiiii: 
N.  E.  reached  Kayak  Island  on  ^t.  Elias  Day,  July  17,  1741,  saw  and 
naned  the  great  mountain,  touched  at  the  Shumagins,  and  was  ship- 
wrecked on  the  Comandorski  Islands.  The  commander  died,  but  the 
scurvy-stricken  crew  survived,  reached  KamschatkL,  with  the  pelts  of  the 
sea-otters  on  whose  f esli  (hey  had  lived,  and  stimulated  traders  to  con- 
tinued voyages  in  search  or  .nuch  furs.  Tschirikow,  reaching  the  coast 
near  Sitka,  sent  a  boat's  crew  in  to  reconnoitre  the  bay;  at  the  end  of 
six  days  sent  a  search  party  for  them,  and  left  aft-^r  a  three  weeks'  stay 
short  of  fourteen  men  and  all  their  boats.  The  defiant  behaviour  oi 
canoe-loads  of  natives  that  paddled  out  to  the  ship,  the  din  on  shove 
and  columns  of  smoke,  pointed  to  some  siivage  sacrifice  at  the  base  of 
his  Mt.  St.  Lazaria. 

In  1783,  (Jregory  Shelikoff,  a  rich  Siberian  merchant,  establ'«hed  a 
post  on  Kadiak  Island,  and  joined  to  him  Alexander  Baranuf,  a  liiis 
sian  merchant  who  had  entered  the  Siberian  trade  and  been  ruined  by 
the  loss  of  his  caravans.  Baranof  pushed  the  enterprise  in  every  way, 
and  in  May,  17*.'9,  reached  Sitk.,  Sound  and  built  a  stockaded  post  ;; 
miles  N.  of  the  present  town.  An  Imperial  charter  with  monopoly  of 
the  Aniericau  possessions  for  twenty  years  had  bee.i  obtained  by 
Uesanof,  the  son-in-law  of  Shelikoif,  and  a  court  councillor,  and  Bar- 
anof was  made  chief  nanager  of  the  Russian  American  Fur  Company,  in 
which  nine  rival  Sibe.ian  firms  were  consolidated  and  members  of  tht 
ini[)erial  family  were  stockholders. 

The  fort  at  Sitka  was  destroyed  in  1802,  t».ud  all  save  a  few  Rus- 
sians, who  found  refuge  on  a  British  trad>ng-ship,  were  murdered. 
Baranof  was  absent  at  the  time,  but  returned  in  August,  1804,  with 
800  Aleut  and  Chugach  hunters.     The  natives  fled  at  sight,  and  he 


w 


M 


I'lPW  fritm  End  of  .Samovar  Hills. 


^  v;  1 


\l 


m 


■      •     f 

.  .1 

Si 

ill) 

FROM   CHATHAM    STRAIT   TO   THE   OCEAN. 


Ill 


wont  back  through  the  archipelago  destroying  villages  everywhere. 
The  Pitkans  entrenched  themselves  on  Katlean's  Rock,  or  the  Kckonr — 
"  a  hill  at  the  end  of  a  peninsula  " — and  at  the  mouth  of  Indian  River. 
Captain  Lisiansky  had  arrived  meanwhile  with  a  man-of-war,  and  in 
two  days  captured  the  Kekoor,  and  four  days  later  the  river  fort  ca- 
pitulated, the  occupants  fleeing  in  the  night,  however,  killing  dogs  and 
strangling  babes  lest  any  sound  betray  them.  By  Baranof's  advice  Re- 
sauof  went  to  Japan  and  vainly  attempted  to  open  trade  to  secure  sup- 
plies for  the  new  colony.  Jiaranof  contemplated  building  a  fort  on  the 
Columbia,  but  through  Resanof  opened  trade  with  the  Si)auish  colonies 
ill  California.  Resanof,  whose  wife  had  died,  paid  court  to  Donna 
Conccpcion  Arguello,  daughter  of  the  alcalde  at  San  Francisco  Hay ; 
they  were  betrothed,  and  Resanof  died  i.j  Siberia  while  on  his  way  to 
Petersburg  to  obtain  the  Czar's  consent  to  the  marriage.  Barauof 
was  suspicious  of  John  Jacol.)  Astor's  fort  on  the  Columbia  and  his 
many  ships,  and  distrusted  the  New  York  trader's  offer  of  a  perma- 
nent alliance  of  interests,  v/hich  was  cut  short  by  the  VV^ar  of  181*2. 

Baranof  established  a.i  agricultural  colony  at  lioilr<ja  Buij  in  the 
redwood  country  north  of  San  Francisco,  and  the  mills  and  lands  were 
tended  until  sold  to  Cteneral  John  A.  Sutter  for  $.30,<)(»0,  a  few  years 
before  the  discovery  of  gold  in  California.  An  Hawaiian  colony  pros- 
pered for  a  time,  and  Baranof  plaiir.eu  the  annexation  of  those  islands, 
but,  after  eighteen  years  of  service,  he  was  summarily  (le[)osod,  his 
son-in-law,  a  young  naval  officer,  took  charge,  and  until  1  ^c*  t  the  chief 
managers  were  naval  officers,  who  tilleil  five-year  terms  at  a  salary  of 
$5,000  a  year,  with  a  residence  and  many  penpiisitc^  furnished  by  the 
company.  Baranof,  Nmiok,  or  the  master,  as  al'  lingits  called  lum, 
died  in  Batavia  on  his  way  home  to  Russia,  April,  ;  ^ ; 'J.  Resatiof  in 
his  journal,  Langsdorff,  Lisiansky,  and  Washington  Irving  have  pic- 
tured this  able  tyrant  and  his  surroundings,  and  the  wret(  lud  condi- 
tion of  the  Aleuts  he  imjjressed  as  hunters,  and  the  promi/schhr^s  or 
indentured  Siberian  labourers  whom  he  kei)t  so  deeply  in  debt  that 
they  were  never  free  to  leave.  None  of  the  chief  managers  succeed- 
ing Baranof  were  able  lo  make  as  large  returns  as  he,  and  after  re- 
newed leases  the  company  saw  the  advisability  of  closing  out,  and  the 
Russian  Government  the  disadvantage  of  holding  such  remote  depend- 
encies. 

The  Russian  chief  managers  were  : 
Gregor  ShelikofF,  August  3,  1784,  to  July  27,  1791. 
Alexander  Baranof,  July  27.  1791,  to  January  11,  1818, 
Lieutenant  Yanovsky  for  Captain  Hagemeister,  January  11,  1818, 
to  January,  1821. 

Captain  Mouravieff,  January,  1821,  to  January,  182G. 
Captain  ChistiakofF,  January,  1826,  to  January,  1831. 
Baron  Wrangell,  January,  1831,  to  January,  1836. 
Captain  KuprcanofF,  1836-1840. 


#4     S'Jl 


4' 

I 


I  !; 


''•■] 


i,>:ia 


;t; 


m',' 


r%\\ 


;.H, 


:««..■ 


112 


FROM   CHATHAM   STRAIT   TO   THE   OCEAN. 


Lieutenant-Commander  Etholin,  1840-1845. 
Captain  Michael  Tebenkoif,  1845-1850. 
Lieutenant-Commander  Rosenberg,  1851-1853. 
Captain  Voevotsky,  1854-1859. 
Captain  Furuhelm,  1859-1864. 

The  military  governor,  Prince  Deraitrius  MaksoutofF,  1864,  to  Octo- 
ber 18,  1867. 

Baron  WrangcU,  the  arctic  explorer,  was  a  diplomatic  agent  to 
Mexico  as  well  as  chief  manager  at  Sitka ;  and  after  Captain  Moura- 
vieflf,  Captain  Etholin  was  the  great  constructor  and  most  enterprising 
manager.  His  was  the  golden  age  of  the  colonv.  Captain  Tebcnkolr 
made  thorough  surveys ;  and  Kadin,  an  Aleut  from  the  parish  school, 
drew  tiie  Ss  charts,  and  Terentieff,  another  Aleut,  engraved  on  copper 
the  maps  of  the  great  atlas  of  1848,  which  is  authority  where  not  suc- 
ceeded by  the  U.  S.  Coast  Survey's  recent  work.  Prince  Maksoutoff, 
the  only  "  governor,"  was  detailed  toward  the  end  of  the  fur  company's 
last  lease,  when  their  unwillingness  to  continue  the  chart'?r  under  the 
same  burdensome  conditions  made  it  probable  that  the  CzfiT  would 
have  to  govern  this  like  his  other  provinces,  instead  of  farming  it  out. 
The  approaching  expiration  of  that  profitable  lease  caused  him  to  seek 
a  purchaser  for  these  remote  possessions,  so  impossible  to  defend  in 
case  of  war,  and  so  directly  adjoining  British  territory. 

THE   PURCHASE  OF  RUSSIAN  AMERICA. 

In  1844-'45  the  Emperor  Nicholas  offered  Russian  America  to  the 
United  States  for  the  mere  cost  of  transfer,  if  President  Polk  would 
maintain  the  United  States  line  at  54°  4()',  and  shut  England  out  from 
any  frontage  on  the  Pacific.  In  1854  it  was  offered  to  the  United 
States,  and  again  in  1859,  when  $5,000,000  was  refused.  From  1861  to 
1866  survey  parties  of  the  W.  U.  T.  traversed  Alaska,  choosing  a  route 
for  a  telegraph  line  to  Europe  via  Bering  Strait.  The  success  of  the 
Atlantic  cable  in  1866,  after  the  failure  of  l^oO,  ended  the  project,  and 
the  line  completed  to  ,the  Skeena  River  was  abandoned.  A  California 
commercial  syndicate  proposed  the  leasing  and  then  the  purchasing  of 
the  country  in  1864  and  1866,  and  the  project  was  informally  consid- 
ered at  St.  Peteisburg.  Secretary  Seward  deeply  ap'^reciated  Russia's 
tacit  alliance  in  sending  its  fleets  to  the  harbours  of  San  Francisco  and 
New  York  in  1863,  and  keeping  them  there  at  that  critical  time  when 
France  and  England  were  on  the  point  of  recognizing  the  Richmond 
government.  Upon  an  intimaticm  that  the  Czar  wished  to  sell  Russian 
America  to  any  nation  but  England,  Secretary  Seward  o]  '-ned  negotia- 
tions with  Baron  Stoeckl  in  February,  1867.  A  treaty  of'  purchase  was 
sent  to  the  Senate  March  30, 1867,  reported  April  9th,  ratified  May  28th 
by  30  yeas  to  2  nays,  and  proclaimed  by  President  Joimson  June  20, 
1867.  Senator  Charles  Sumner,  who  especially  chaiupiened  the  pur- 
chase, suggested  Alaska — the  name  the  natives  gave  to  Captain  Cook 


FROM   CHATHAM   STRAIT   TO  THE   OCEAN. 


113 


to  Octo- 


igent  to 
I  Moura- 
srprisinj^ 
ibctikoit 
1  school, 
I  copper 
not  suc- 
ksoutoff, 
)mpany's 
nder  the 
r  would 
;ig  it  out. 
ri  to  seek 
jefend  i» 


ica  to  the 
)lk  would 
out  from 
e  United 
1  1861  to 
g  a  route 
!8  of  the 
•ject,  and 
Jalifoinia 
basing  of 
ly  consid- 
RussiaV 
Icisco  and 
inie  when 
liielivnovid 
Rusj^iau 
negotia- 
:hase  was 
|Mav  28th 
June  20, 
the  pur- 
;ain  Cook 


) 


— for  the  name  of  tlie  mainland.  It  was  intended  to  make  General 
Garfield  a  first  Govornor  of  the  Territory,  and  later  divide  it  into  six 
Territories. 

THE  TRANSFER  ^^  RUSSIAN  AMEIUCA  TO  THE  UNITED  STATES. 

Immediate  military  occupation  was  decided  upon.  General  Lovell 
H.  Rousseau,  as  commissioner  on  the  part  of  the  United  States,  and 
Captains  Pestschouroff  and  Koskul  on  the  part  of  Russia,  met  at  Sitka, 
October  18, 1867.  Three  men-of-war,  the  Ompce^  Jamestown,  and  licsaca, 
and  General  Jefferson  C.  Davis  and  '250  regular  troops  were  in  waiting, 
and  at  half  past  three  o'clock  that  afternoon  Prince  Maksoutoff  and 
Vice-Governor  Gardsishoff  and  the  commissioners  met  the  United  States 
officers  at  the  foot  of  the  Governor's  flag-staff.  Double  national  salutes 
were  fired  by  the  men-ofwar  and  the  land  battery  as  the  Russian  flag 
was  lowered  and  the  American  flag  raised.  Captain  Pestschouroii  ad- 
vanced as  the  Russian  flag  fell,  and  said  :  "  General  Rousseau,  by  au- 
thority of  his  Majesty  the  Emperor  of  all  the  Russias,  I  transfer  to 
you,  the  agent  of  the  United  States,  all  the  territory  and  dominion  now 
possessed  by  his  Majesty  on  the  continent  of  America  and  in  the  adja- 
cent islands,  according  to  a  treaty  made  between  those  two  powers." 
General  Rousseau  accepted,  with  similar  brief  phrases,  and  his  young 
son  raised  the  new  flag  slowly.  Prince  Maksoutoff  gave  a  dinner  and 
ball  that  night,  the  shipping  was  dressed,  and  fireworks  were  display  "u. 

There  was  an  immediate  exodus  of  all  Russians  able  to  leave,  the 
(lovemment  offering  free  transportation  to  and  homes  in  the  Amoor 
settlements.  The  Julian  gave  way  to  the  Gregorian  calendar  over- 
night, and  a  day  was  dropped  from  Sitka's  records  to  right  the  difference 
of  twenty-four  hours  between  the  Russian  day  coming  eastward  from 
Moscow  and  our  day  coming  westward  from  Greenwich. 

During  the  summer  of  1867  Prof,  (ileorge  Davidson  and  eight  scien- 
tists made  a  reconnoissance  of  southeastern  Alaska,  and  their  report 
with  Senator  Sumner's  speech,  were  the  strongest  arguments  Secretary 
Seward  offered  in  his  ^'■Russian  America''''  (Fortieth  Congress,  second 
session.  House  of  Representatives,  Ex.  Doc.  177),  submitted  at  the  con- 
vening of  Congress  in  December.  There  was  bitter  opposition  to  ap- 
propriating the  $7,200,000  gold  equal  to  $10,000,000  in  paper  at  that 
titue,  to  pay  for  the  territory  so  suromarily  taken  possession  of;  but  on 
July  14, 1868,  the  House  agreed  by  a  vote  oi  98  against  49,  and  the  draft 
was  handed  Baron  Stoeckl.  Corruption  in  the  purchase  was  alleged,  and 
a  winter  of  investigation  followed  the  winter  of  contest  and  ridicule. 
Ill  1869  ex-Secretary  Seward  visited  Alaska,  was  first  a  guest  of  Mayor 
Bodge,  and  went  off  to  Prof.  Davidson's  observatory  in  the  Chilkat  coun- 
try. Returning  by  way  of  Kootznahoo,  Mr.  Seward  was  the  guest  of 
(ieneral  Davis  on  the  A'Vi'oor,  and  addressed  the  citizens  in  ihe  Lutheran 
clmrch.  He  visited  the  Taku  Glacier,  the  mining  camps  on  the  Stikine 
and  Fort  Wrap.gi.'U,  and  was  more  than  ever  convinced  of  the  great  ad- 
vantages gained  by  the  purchase  of  Alaska.  Lady  Franklin  reached 
by  the   ;roop-ship  Newbern  in  1870,  and  with   her  niece  Miss 


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114 


FROM   CHATHAM    STRAIT   TO   THE   OCEAN. 


Crnc.oft  was  a  guest  of  the  commandant  on  the  Kckoor.  The  dis- 
covery of  gold  in  1871  lent  an  excitement  to  garrison  life,  and  anny 
pay-vouchers  were  sunk  in  raining  experiments  at  Sitka  a.s  protitlessly 
as  navy  pay-vouchers  were  poured  into  Juneau  prospect-holes  ten  yeurs 
later. 

Alaska  was  at  first  a  separate  military  department,  General  J.  C. 
Davis  commanding,  with  garrisons  at  Sitka,  Fort  Tongass,  Fort  Wran- 
gell,  Kodiak,  Fort  St.  Nicholas  in  Cook's  Inlet,  and  a  detail  on  the  Seal 
Islands.  Eight  officers  rucceeded  General  Davis  at  Sitka,  after  Alaska 
became  a  part  of  the  Dep;u'inent  of  the  Columbia,  and  June  14,  1877, 
Sitka,  the  last  garrison,  wari  vacated,  and  "  all  control  of  the  militai  y 
department  over  affairs  in  Alaska  "  ceased. 

AN  ABANDONED  TERRITORY. 

Within  a  few  months  after  the  troops  left  Sitka,  tho  Indians  had  de- 
stroyed all  Government  property  outside  the  stockade  and  threatened  a 
general  massacre.  Appeals  to  Washington  for  protection  were  un- 
heeded. The  residents  v.ere  besieged  in  the  old  fur  warehouse  in 
February.  H.  B.  M.'s  Ospry,  Captain  Holmes  A'Court,  was  at  Esqui- 
mault,  when  a  last  desperate  appeal  came  to  Victoria,  and  without 
orders  or  instructions  hurried  north,  arriving  from  the  ocean  as  a  great 
war  party  was  coming  in  from  Peril  Strait  for  the  final  attack.  The 
residents  attempted  to  raise  the  British  flag  and  implore  annexation 
and  protection  by  England,  but  were  prevented  by  Michael  Travers, 
Duke  of  Japonski,  an  ex-sailor  of  the  United  States  navy.  Captain 
A'Court  remained  until  a  revenue  cutter  and  a  man-of-war  arrived. 

A  man-of-war  has  been  continuously  detailed  to  service  in  south- 
eastern Alaska  ever  since,  and  until  the  establishment  of  civil  govern- 
ment such  commanding  officers  were  virtually  naval  governors  and  the 
ships  Jamestoivn,  Wachiiseity  Adams,  and  Pinta  the  seat  of  government. 
Captain  Lester  A.  Beardslee,  whose  reports  (Forty-sixth  Congress,  second 
session.  Senate  Ex.  Doc.  No.  145,  and  Forty-seventh  Congress,  first  ses- 
sion, Senate  Ex.  Doc.  No.  71)  are  the  most  valuable  contributions  to 
Alaskiana  since  the  transfer,  was  succeeded  by  Captains  Glass,  Merri- 
man,  Coghlan,  and  Nichols. 

Thirty  bills  providing  a  form  of  government  for  Alaska  were  intro- 
duced between  the  transfer  and  the  passage  of  Senator  Harrison's  bill, 
May  13, 1884,  which  gave  the  nondescript  tract  the  skeleton  of  civil  gov- 
ernment ;  a  governor,  district  judge,  marshal,  clerk,  and  commissioners ; 
with  right  to  enter  mineral  claims,  but  distinctly  withholding  the  general 
land  laws.  Attempts  toward  securing  representation  at  Washington 
failed,  and  the  invitation  to  join  in  the  Columbian  Exposition  on  a  foot- 
ing with  other  Territories  was  the  first  civil  recognition  given  the  so- 
called  district,  and  the  admission  of  delegates  to  tlie  National  Conven- 
tions at  Minneapolis  and  Chicago  in  1892  the  first  political  privilege. 
*'  Alaska  for  the  Alaskans  "  is  vehemently  claimed  as  a  fit  rule  in  execu- 
tive appointments. 

The  Territorial  Governors  have  been  :  John  H.  Kinhead,  of  Nevada, 


'M 


SITKA   AND   VICINITY. 


115 


en  veiii'.s 


May,  1884,  to  September,  1886  ;  A.  P.  Swineford,  of  Michigan,  Septem- 
ber, 1886,  to  June,  1889  ;  Lyman  E.  Knapp,  of  Vermont,  June,  1889. 

The  Russian  archives,  manuscript  journals,  records,  logs,  and  ac- 
count-books were  transferred  from  Sitka  to  the  State  Department  at 
Washington  in  1867,  and,  with  Tikhmenieif's  history  of  the  colony,  oflfer 
much  of  interest  to  those  reading  Russian  text  and  script. 

Sitka,  the  Capital  of  the  Territory  of  Alaska. 

Sitka,  the  capital  and  seat  of  government  of  the  Territory  of  Alaska, 
is  situated  on  the  \V.  coast  of  Baranof  Island.  It  is  the  official  resi- 
dence of  the  Governor,  United  States  District  Judge,  and  other  Territorial 
officers,  and  had  a  population  of  1,188  in  1890,  composed  of  298  whites, 
859  natives,  and  31  Chinese.  Sitka  is  the  home  port  for  the  U.  S.  man- 
of-war  detailed  for  protective  duty  in  thet<e  waters,  and  its  marines  are 
quartered  on  shore. 

The  town  is  built  on  level  land  at  the  mouth  of  Indian  River  at  the 
foot  of  Mt.  Verstovoi  (3,216  ft.).  Lincoln,  the  main  street,  extends 
from  the  Government  wharf  to  the  old  Russian  saw-mill,  and  tue  Gov- 
ernor's Walk,  a  beach  road  built  by  the  Russians,  continues  to  the  Point, 
a  half  mile  distant.  A  large  parade-ground  fronts  the  harbour.  A  gran- 
ite monument  at  its  centre  is  the  U.  S.  Astronomical  Station  (latitude 
57°  02'  is.,  and  longitude  135°  19'  W.).  Mail  steamers  remain  twenty- 
four  hours,  and  excursion  steamers  make  shorter  stay.  Ships'  time  is 
one  hour  in  advance  of  local  time,  which  tourists  should  remember.  The 
chief  objects  of  interest  are  the  so-called  "  Castle,"  or  old  residence  of 
the  Russian  Fur  Company's  chief  managers,  the  Greek  cathedral  church, 
the  Indian  village,  the  block-houses  and  Russian  cemetery,  the  Sitka 
Mission  and  Industrial  School,  the  Sitka  Museum,  ana  the  Park  along 
the  banks  of  Indian  River.  There  are  several  traders'  stores  with  curio 
departments,  and  private  dealers  in  curios  offer  interesting  and  very  ex- 
pensive souvenirs.  The  Alaska  totem  spoon  was  designed  by  th  >  ite 
PVederick  Schwatka,  and  two  native  silversmiths  make  unique  silver  tro- 
phies. The  spoon  mania  has  always  flourished  in  Alaska,  and  the  Ilaidas' 
carved  goat-horn  spoons  are  real  works  of  art.  Spoon-polishing  is  a 
fashion  of  every  tourist  season. 

T\iQ  Barracks  d^ndi  Ciistom-House  at  the  right  of  the  wharf  were  built 
by  the  Russians,  and  the  barracks  building  is  the  Territorial  jail  and 
court-house,  with  apartments  above  for  civil  officers.  A  long  flight  of 
steps  leads  to  the  Castle,  as  Americans  have  called  it  since  1867,  crown- 
ing a  rocky  eminence  80  ft.  in  height.     Baranof  first  occupied  a  leaky 


m 


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116 


8ITKA    AND   VICINITY. 


two-roomed  cabin  at  the  foot  of  Katlean's  Rock,  where  the  barracks  or 
jail  kitchens  stand.  Later  he  built  a  block-house  on  the  height,  which 
was  burned.  Governor  Kupreanoff  built  a  large  mansion,  which  was 
nearly  completed  at  the  time  of  Sir  Edward  Belcher's  visit,  1837.  It 
was  destroyed  by  the  great  earthquake  of  1847,  and  rebuilt  on  the  same 
plan.  Lisiansky,  Lutke,  and  Whymper  have  given  pictures  and  descrip- 
tions of  these  three  citadels  protected  by  stockades,  bastions,  and  bat- 
tery of  forty  pieces,  and  with  Sir  George  Simpson  have  described  its 
social  life.  It  is  a  massive  structure,  measuring  86  x  51  ft,  built  of  cedar 
logs,  joined  with  copper  bolts  and  riveted  to  the  rock.  It  is  three  stories 
in  height,  witli  a  glass  cupola,  which  was  formerly  the  light-house  of  the 
harbour,  the  lamp  standing  110  ft.  above  the  sea.  It  was  richly  fur- 
nished and  decorated  when  transferred  to  the  U.  S.  military  commandant 
in  1867,  but  after  the  departure  of  the  troops  was  looted  of  every  be- 
longing, wantonly  stripped,  and  defaced.  No  repairs  were  made  until 
1893. 

Baranof's  daughter,  Mme.  Yanovski,  was  the  first  hostess  on  the 
Kekoor  (1805-'21),  but  the  Baroness  Wrangell  (1831-'36)  was  first  to 
leave  any  social  fame.  Mme.  Kupreanoff  (1836-40)  crossed  Siberia  on 
horseback  to  accompany  her  husband  to  this  distant  post.  Mme.  Etho- 
lin  (1840-'46),  a  native  of  Helsingfors  in  Finland,  was  the  Lady  Boun- 
tiful of  blessed  memory  who  did  most  for  the  colony.  She  established  a 
school  for  Creole  girls,  dowered  them,  and  gave  them  wedding  feasts  in 
this  home.  Sir  George  Simpson  has  described  her  refined  hospitality, 
the  banquets  of  30  and  50  guests,  the  costly  plate,  and  appointments. 
Mme.  Furuhelm  (1859-'64),  a  Petersburg  beauty,  was  long  remembered 
for  her  accomplishments  and  kindness.  The  first  Princess  Maksoutolf 
(1864),  an  Englishwoman,  died  soon  after  her  ariival,  and  was  burieii 
in  the  Lutheran  cemetery  on  the  knoll  in  line  half-way  between  the  two 
block-houses.  The  second  Princess  Maksoutoff  was  young  and  beauti- 
ful, with  great  tact  and  charm,  and  made  life  on  the  Kekoor  one  round 
of  gaiety  until  the  day  when  with  streaming  eyes  she  watched  the  Rus- 
sian flag  flung  down  and  the  United  States  colours  run  up  on  the  citaders 
flag-staff.  It  was  the  residence  of  the  successive  military  commandants 
from  1867  to  1872,  and  Lady  Franklin  and  Mr.  Seward  were  entertained 
there. 

Two  young  officers  of  the  U,  S.  S.  Adams  and  the  purser  of  the 
Idaho  maimfactured  a  ghost  story  to  meet  the  demands  of  the  first 
pleasure  travellers  in  1883,  who  insisted  that  the  deserted  and  half- 
wrecked  castle  must  be  haunted.  A  Lucia  di  Lammermoor,  condemned 
to  marry  against  her  will,  killed  herself,  or  was  killed  by  a  retunied 
lover,  in  the  drawing-room,  the  long  apartment  on  the  second  floor, 
north  side,  adjoining  the  ball-room,  where  she  walks  at  midnight. 

General  Davis  cleared  away  the  old  ship-yard,  and  filled  in  and  made 


SITKA    AND   VICINITY. 


117 


the  present  parade-ground.  The  officers'  quarters  that  fronted  on  two 
sides  were  nearly  all  burned  by  the  natives  between  1872  and  1877,  the 
one  nearest  the  soa-wall  and  native  villape  being  used  as  residence  by 
the  territorial  governors.  The  heavy  stockade  around  the  settlement 
was  torn  down  piecemeal  after  the  troops  left.  The  Sitka  Uistorical 
Society  was  organized  in  time  to  preserve  the  two  block-houses. 

The  large  log  building  next  the  Custom-House,  occupied  by  the  Sitka 
Trading  Company,  was  the  old  fur  warehouse,  and  often  held  pelts  to 
the  value  of  $1,000,000  in  Russian  days. 

Russian  Orthodox  Church  of  St.  Michael. 

Baranof  built  a  small  chapel  in  1816,  but  when  Ivan  Veniaminoff 
was  made  bishop  of  the  independent  diocese  of  Russiaj"  America  he 
built  this  cathedra],  occupying  a  quadrangle  midway  in  the  main  street. 
It  was  dedicated  in  1844.  Veniaminoff,  then  Metropolitan  of  Moscow, 
sent  rich  vestments,  plate,  pictures,  and  altar  furnishing  to  the  church, 
which  was  also  under  the  special  protection  of  the  imperial  family,  who 
filled  it  with  gifts.  The  chime  of  six  bells  in  the  cupola  was  sent 
from  Moscov^ 

The  interior  is  richly  decorated,  and  is  open  to  visitors  on  steamer 
days  for  a  small  admission  fee,  which  goes  to  the  poor  fund  of  the 
parish.  There  are  no  seats,  the  congregation  standing  or  kneeling,  and 
a  male  choir  chanting  throughout  all  services.  The  interior  is  finished 
in  white  and  gold,  and  the  inner  sanctuary,  where  no  women  may  enter, 
is  separated  from  the  body  of  the  church  by  elaborate  bronze  doors. 
The  picture  of  the  Ascension  over  these  doors  was  formerly  in  the 
chancel  of  the  Lutheran  church.  Massive  candlesticks  stand  at  either 
side  of  the  doors,  and  the  screen  holds  full-length  pictures  of  St.  Michael 
and  St.  Nicholas  in  armour  and  robes  of  beaten  silver,  with  jewelled 
hales  and  helmets.  The  chapel  and  the  altar  in  the  right  transept  are 
dedicated  to  St.  John  the  Baptist.  The  chapel  of  St.  Mary  on  the  left 
is  used  for  winter  services,  and  the  altar  picture  of  the  Jfadonna  and 
Child,  their  sweet  Byzantine  faces  shadowed  with  heavy  silver  draper- 
ies, is  much  admired. 

The  church  treasury  contains  many  rich  vestments,  jewelled  crowns, 
crosses,  caskets,  and  reliquaries ;  a  fine  baptismal  bowl,  illuminated 
l)reviaries  and  missals  with  jewelled  and  enamelled  covers.  The  bish- 
op's mitred  cap  and  the  crowns  used  in  the  wedding  ceremony  are  very 
ornate.  The  bishop's  see  was  trarsferred  to  San  Francisco  in  1868, 
and  the  great  diamond  cross,  and  a  Bible  whose  silver  covers  weighed 
twenty-seven  pounds,  were  taken  there,  together  with  the  richest  vest- 
ments. In  the  following  year  discharged  U.  S.  soldiers  robbed  the 
church  of  the  Czar's  jewelled  Bible  and  many  valuable  pieces  of  plate, 
a  few  of  which  were  recovered  in  a  mutilated  condition. 

The  Czar  of  Russia,  as  temporal  head  of  the  Greek  Orthodox 
Church,  maintains  the  17  churches  and  02  chapels  in  Alaska,  and  the 


Pr" 


#^ 


V'H 


118 


SITKA    AND   VICINITY. 


clinpols  in  Chiciifjo  and  San  Francisco,  at  an  expense  of  $♦)(),()(»()  a  year. 
lie  tranHferred  the  bishop's  see  from  Sitka  to  San  Francisco,  and  then 
to  Unalaska,  and  Imck  to  Sitka,  partially  restoring  at  last  some  of  its 
glory  to  this  Cathedral  of  St.  Michael.  The  bishop  resides  in  the  ioiijr, 
green-roofed  dwelling  on  the  (iov<'rnor'8  Walk,  and  there  is  a  tiny 
Chapel  of  the  Annunciation  off  his  drawing-room  Mhose  altar  sliino 
with  many  fine  silver  icons. 

The  Chapel  of  the  Resurrection,  built  into  the  stockade  near  tlif 
present  Maiine  Barracks,  was  used  for  the  native  communicants  until 
the  transfer.  It  was  once  seized  and  used  as  a  fortiess  dining  an  ii]i- 
rising  of  the  natives.  It  fell  to  ruin  and  was  destroyed  some  years  a;;(), 
and  all  communicants  now  worship  together  at  St.  Michael's. 

The  Lutheran  church,  built  by  Governor  Etholin  in  1810  for  ilic 
Swedes  and  Finns  employed  in  the  foinidries  and  shi,»-yards,  was  the  gar- 
rison church  after  the  transfer,  later  was  abandoned,  and  finally  toiii 
down.  Piince  Maksoutoff  sent  all  the  plate  and  furniture  back  to  the 
mother  church  in  Finland  in  18t»7.  Lieutenant  (iilman  rescued  and  re- 
paired the  wrecked  organ,  that  afterwaid  found  a  place  in  the  museum. 

The  ponderous  log  building  on  the  S,  side  of  the  church,  occupied  a,< 
a  general  trading-store,  was  formerly  the  head  ofhce  and  countiu}:- 
house  of  the  Russian-American  P'ur  (/ompany.  The  deaccm's  house  and 
other  dwellings,  which  are  church  property,  face  on  tlie  X.  side.  Tlie 
Officers''  Chib-IIouse  at  the  comer  of  the  quadrangle  was  a  richly  ap- 
pointed building  in  Russian  days.  It  was  the  club-house  of  the  U.  S. 
ndlitary  officers,  but  only  a  tenement-house  since  the  garrison  left.  A 
small  spruce-tree  growing  from  the  crevice  of  a  boulder,  beside  tlic 
engine-house  facing  the  club-house,  is  one  of  the  regular  sights  of  tlie 
town. 

The  eminence  X.  of  the  church,  formerly  the  tca-ciardcns  and  race- 
track of  the  Russians,  is  reserved  as  site  for  a  Governor's  mansion.  A 
path  continues  to  the  Human  Cemetery  overlooking  Swan  Lake,  which 
at  one  time  furnished  ice  for  a  large  ice-house  whose  stone  foundations 
remain  on  the  point  of  land  S.  of  the  church.  A  railway  eoimected  tlio 
lake  with  the  ice-house,  and  shipments  were  made  to  San  Francisco. 
The  winters  proving  too  mild,  and  the  ice  too  thin  and  porous,  operations 
were  conducted  at  Glbubokoe  Lake,  or  the  Redoubt,  then  transferred  to 
Kodiak,  and  finally  suspended  upon  the  perfecting  of  ice-machines. 

Foundries  once  occupied  the  land  between  the  church  and  the  saw- 
mill. Ploughs  and  farm  implements  were  expoi-ted  to  Pacific  colonies, 
and  the  bells  of  nearly  all  the  mission  churches  in  California  were  cast 
here.  These  works  and  the  ship-yards,  being  the  only  ones  of  their 
kind  on  the  Pacific  shores  until  after  the  gold  discoveries  in  California, 
made  Sitka  the  rendezvous  of  all  ships  and  fleets. 

The  '"'•Blarney-Stone^''  a  square  block  on  the  beach  opposite  the 
Mission,  is  believed  to  dower  the  one  kissing  it  with  a  magic  tongue. 


1. 

I: 


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HITKA   AND   VICINITY. 


119 


Baranof  is  snld  to  hnvo  spent  many  fine  Rftern<M)n8  sitting  on  it.  There 
is  a  Russian  inscription  on  tlic  face,  and  each  U.  S.  man-of-war  or  rev- 
oiine  cutter  used  to  cut  its  name  on  it  as  inipeiisliahlc  record  of  entry. 

Tlie  Sitka  Mission  and  fudwitnal  t^a'iool  was  established  by  the 
Presbyterian  Board  in  1878.  In  1884  the  Indian  appropriation  bill 
provided  "  $15,000  for  the  support  and  ediicaticm  of  Indian  children  of 
both  sexes  at  industrial  schools  in  Alaska."  An  allowance  of  $120  per 
capita  was  made  for  each  pupil  enrolled.  In  1888  this  educational 
fund  was  transferred  to  the  Board  of  Plducation,  and  the  Indian  Bureau 
ceased  to  have  any  connection  with  the  natives  of  Alaska.  There  were 
Ut4  pupils  in  1890-M)1,  and  the  p^roup  of  buildings  include  dornutories, 
sch(M>l- rooms,  work-rooms,  a  hospital,  church,  museum,  cooper,  car- 
p'l.ter,  blacksmith,  and  shoemakers'  shops.  The  laundry  and  industrial 
school  building  were  the  gift  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Elliot  F.  Shepard,  of  New 
York.  There  is  a  model  settlement  of  school  graduates  beyond  the 
Mission.  Exercises  are  held  in  the  school-rooms  on  steamer  days.  The 
Mission  band  plays  there,  and  'inmlly  as  a  farewell  at  the  wharf. 

Cliief  Michael's  village,  destroyed  by  Lisiansky  in  1804,  occupied 
the  7\)?'n<  Koloahenskoy  at  the  mouth  of  Indian  River.  Afterward 
the  Swedes  and  Finns  in  the  Russian  Company's  employ  built  their 
group  of  cottages,  and  truces  of  the  ruins  may  be  found  in  the  park- 
like reach. 

The  Indian  River  Park. 

Kaloschimkaia  Rctscha^  or  Indian  River,  has  been  admired  by 
every  visitor  of  the  century.  It  rises  in  the  valley  that  opens  behind 
the  town,  and  is  fed  by  the  snow-banks  of  Verstovoi  and  the  Three 
Brothers,  or  Valley  Mountains.  In  Sir  George  Simpson's  time  (1844)  it 
was  so  crowded  with  salmon  that  a  canoe  could  not  be  forced  through. 
Malma  trout  are  the  best  catch  of  summer  weeks  now,  and  salmon 
swim  occasionally.  By  Executive  proclamation  of  June  21,  1890,  a 
strip  of  land  500  ft.  wide  on  the  right  bank  and  250  ft.  wide  on  the 
left  bank  of  Indian  River,  between  the  falls  and  its  mouth,  were  re- 
served for  a  public  park,  and  10  acres  of  land  beyond  the  Mission  grant 
was  reserved  for  a  naval  and  military  cemetery.  It  is  a  beautiful  natu- 
ral park,  and  contains  much  of  interest  to  the  tourist — thickets  of 
devil's  club  20  ft.  high,  thickets  of  salmon-beiry  and  thimble-berry 
bushes,  and  a  wealth  of  strange  ferns  and  mosses.  One  path  leads  from 
the  Governor's  Walk  through  the  model  village  beyond  the  Mission  to 
the  river's  bank,  and  two  other  paths  lead  from  the  Governor's  Walk 


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SITKA    AND    VICINITY. 


to  the  bridge  spanning  the  stream  above  its  mouth.  Many  pide  pathn 
diverge  from  the  main  path  along  the  left  bark,  which  extends  from 
the  falls  to  the  beach.  At  the  latter  point  are  the  giaves  of  Lisian- 
sky's  men  who  were  killed  by  ambuscaded  Indians  while  obtaining 
water  for  the  ship  in  1804.  The  path  continues  thei  ce  to  Jamestovm 
Bay. 

On  the  right  bank  near  the  falls,  the  prostrate  trunk  of  a  cedar  Id 
ft.  in  diameter,  with  )  group  of  young  trees  growing  on  its  mossy  ter- 
race, lies  beside  the  path.  The  rustic  seats,  bridges,  and  the  clearef^ 
path  are  part  of  public  improvements  made  by  Lieutenant  Oilman,  U.  S. 
M.  C,  in  1884.  His  rustic  bridge  at  the  falls  was  destroyed  by  wood- 
cutters, who  allowed  untrimmed  trees  to  float  down  and  jam  above  it; 
and  the  lower  bridge  was  destroyed  ))y  flood.  The  Davis  Road  con- 
nects ihe  old  brewery  above  the  falls  and  the  Governo/s  Walk,  cross- 
ing a  high  swamp  coveied  with  blueberry  bushes  ard  moroshkies 
{Rnhus  chceriiavorus\  a  small  ground  berry.  The  Cemetery  Road  joins 
it  near  the  beach. 

The  Indian  Village. 

The  native  village  fronting  on  the  harl>our  N.  of  tb<^  wharf  has  been 
transformed  since  1880,  and  does  not  contain  one  of  the  original  lodges 
or  great  communal  dwellings  of  old.  Captiin  (Hass  had  the  villa<re 
cleaned  in  1881,  and  the  houses  numbered,  for  record  and  sanitary 
inspection.  An  ambition  to  display  the  highest  number  has  caused 
each  one  to  raise  tho  figures  on  his  dooi  ,vay  since  such  discipline  was 
relaxed.  The  silversmiths  and  basket-weavers  often  have  choice  pieces 
of  their  work  in  reserve,  and  the  tourist  readily  pays  a  higher  price  for 
the  privilege  of  purchasing  on  the  premises.  Mrs.  Tom,  who  is  not  a 
princess,  but  of  commonest  Yakutat  stock  and  of  an  inferior  totem,  is 
possessed  of  great  wealth  in  silver  dollars,  and  is  one  of  the  shrewdest 
and  largest  traders  in  the  Territory,  owning  schooners  ar>d  branch  stores. 
Extensive  advertising  has  made  her  famous  -md  raised  ''le  prices  of  her 
goods,  but  few  of  the  romantic  histories  current  ht*ve  any  foundation 
in  truth. 

A  trail  leads  up  the  beach  to  the  sawmill,  and  another  across  to 
Swan  Lake.  Gavan,  or  Harbour  Hill,  N.  of  the  village,  is  2,200  ft.  in 
height. 

TUE  SITEANS  AND  THEIR  RECORDS. 

Genera!  Halleck's  census  of  1869  estimated  the  Sitkans  at  1,200. 
Captain  Glass's  winter  census  of  1881  found  840.     The  official  census 


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8ITKA    AND    VK^INTTY 


1-21 


of  1890  recorded  814  villucrers  in  July,  l>ut  residents  say  tliat  tneie  are 
always  more  than  1,000  livinfr  in  tlie  ranch  in  winter. 

Thr  Sitlciin.'i  are  of  mixed  and  eonmion  stock,  descended  fr<ini  ont- 
casts,  renep;ades,  malcontents,  and  wandereis  cd'  many  tribes.  The 
original  word  "  Sheetka  " — sh  whIoi,  a  nionntain,  and  tukvKH,  a  villajie — 
is  freely  translated  as  "  the  people  livintr  at  the  base  of  the  mountain  " 
(  Verstovoi),  and  the  tine  SJuitha  was  the  fortilied  villajrc  of  SOO  pco|)lo 
destroyed  by  Baranof  and  Lisiansky  at  the  Point.  AH  other  Tlinirits 
looked  down  upon  them  at  that  time,  a!id  a  Iloonah  or  Koot/nahoo 
child  was  most  insulted  when  called  **  as  <j;ieat  a  blockhead  a>  a  Sitkati." 
An  old  Koot/nahoo  told  Lisiansky  that  loni:',  lonjj;  atro,  in  a  Itay  (Kat- 
liansky)  near  Old  Sitka,  two  orphan  brothers  of  unknown  oiiu'in  lived 
alone  in  a  world  of  plenty  until  Chat,  the  youn^^er,  ate  a  sea  vejretable 
like  the  prickly  cucund)cr.  The  elder  knew  it  was  the  one  forbidden 
fmit ;  the  abundance  ceased,  and  the  two  nearly  starved.  The  bay 
was  common  huntin<x-ground  to  all  tribes,  and  some  visiting  Stikines, 
pitying  them,  left  them  Stikine  wives  of  the  Crow  clan  to  teach  them 
iiow  to  live  in  the  changed  world.  All  Sitkaus  of  the  Kaksatti,  or 
Crow  totem,  are  descended  from  this  pair.  The  Kaksattis  and  the 
Kokwantons,  or  Wolf  elan,  about  evenly  divide  the  tribe  now,  the  latter 
a  band  of  mixed  Auk  and  Chilkat  stock,  who  came  over  from  the 
Kootznahoo  country  in  Baranoi's  time. 

Until  1821  the  Indians  were  not  allowed  to  settle  on  the  fort  shore, 
and  they  kept  to  the  harl)our  islands.  Lutke  ( lNi!7)  first  described  the 
present  ranch,  the  vast  lodges  with  the  totem's  elligy  l)efore  the  door, 
and  the  feasts  and  dance>  that  went  on  at  these  signs  of  the  Crow,  the 
Wolf,  and  the  Bear.  Although  the  fort  was  strongly  defended,  ;i,O00 
warriors  once  appeared,  demanded  blankets,  and  l)egan  a  dance 
that  frightened  the  Russians  into  Cdmpliance.  In  ISiitJ  an  epidemic 
of  small-pox  began,  lasted  for  I'oui'  years,  and  reduced  all  the  tiibes 
to  one  half  their  number.  L(mg  befoie  the  Russians  came  the  great 
Crow  had  sent  the  same  fatal  diseas(>  as  ])imislinu'nt  for  the  continmil 
wars  among  the  Tlingits ;  but  the  medicine-men  ascrii)ed  thi,-<  epidemic 
to  the  white  priests  and  doctors,  and,  like  the  Salish,  viewed  baptism 
and  vaccination  as  rites  of  evil  eifeet.  In  I8r).j  the  Sitkans  attacked 
the  fort,  but  were  (piickly  subdued. 

They  were  displeased  at  the  change  of  Hags,  puzzled  by  the  lax  rule 
of  the  new  owner,  and  Katlean  told  (Jeneral  Davis  to  put  his  soldiers 
in  canoes  if  ho  expected  to  control  the  Tlingits.  When  the  troop.s  left 
they  enjoyed  a  season  of  lawlessness,  l>ut  were  (piiekly  brought  around 
l)y  the  man-of-war  govermnent.  Seiiools  and  piospeious  tiade  have 
transformed  them,  and  they  are  but  t'rontiei'  tl.-hermen,  loggers,  or 
lK)atmen,  differing  only  in  complexion  and  occasional  speech  from  the 
average  white  backwoodsman.  Tlieii'  canoes  are  the  only  ])ictures(pie 
thing  left  them,  and  the  winter  dances  are  fast  taking  on  the  nature  of 
historical  plays,  representations  of  ancient  times  and  customs.  The 
berry  feast  in  midsununcr  is  o<'tcn  celel)ratcd  with  spiiit  and  a  water 
procession  <»f  decorated  canoes  carries  the  wliolc  tribe  off  on  a  picnic  to 
gather  salmon-berries  on  favoured  shores. 


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122 


SITKA   AND  VICINITY. 


Lisiansky  made  a  vocabulary  of  the  Sitkan  dialect,  and  DixoD  re- 
corded several  of  their  songs.  Baron  Wrangell  wrote  much  of  them,  and 
Veniaminoff  compiled  a  valuable  ethnological  work.  He  recorded  their 
legends  and  folk-lore,  and  described  their  customs  in  detail.  Since  the 
transfer  the  only  ethnological  work  has  been  that  of  Lieutenant  George 
T.  Emmons,  U.  S.  N.,  whose  collections  in  the  Museum  of  Natural  His- 
tory, Central  Park,  New  York,  and  for  the  Alaskan  section  in  the  Co- 
lumbian Exposition  at  Chicago  in  1 893,  embody  all  of  Tlingit  art,  and 
his  note-books  contain  all  of  Tlingit  record  and  lore  resulting  from  nine 
years'  systematic  study. 

The  Ascent  of  Verstovoi. 

The  ascent  of  Verstovoi  is  the  most  profitable  day's  excursion  around 
Sitka.  The  first  shoulder,  the  MomUain  of  the  Cross  (2,597  ft.),  com- 
mands as  fine  an  outlook  as  the  very  tip  of  the  Arrow-Head  peak,  and 
may  be  reached  by  either  of  two  trails,  in  two  and  a  half  or  three  hours 
from  the  wharf.  No  climber  should  attempt  it  alone  or  unarmed,  as  the 
way  puzzles  woodsmen,  and  bears  are  numerous  in  the  salmon  season. 

The  old  Russian  Trail  starts  from  the  ford  of  Indian  River  at  the 
end  of  the  wood-road  leadiug  past  the  cemetery.  It  was  cleared  in  the 
last  decade  of  Russian  rule,  when  an  energetic  Alpine  Club  member 
scaled  and  planted  crosses  on  all  the  heights  around  the  bay.  During 
this  oflBcial's  stay  there  was  an  epidemic  of  mountain-climbing,  and  the 
Russian  women  took  part  in  the  many  picnics  and  dances  on  the 
heights.  The  trail  is  now  overgrown  and  blocled  in  many  places,  and 
is  longer  than  Koster^s  Trail  from  Jamestown  Bay. 

The  climber  may  be  rowed  to  the  water-trough  in  Jamestown  Bay, 
where  Koster^s  Trail  begins,  or  follow  the  path  leading  from  the  Lisi- 
ansky graves  on  Indian  River  through  to  the  bay.  At  low  tide  short 
cuts  may  be  taken  across  the  thick,  slimy  beds  of  sea-weed  covering  the 
rocky  beaches.  The  same  Executive  proclamation  that  reserved  the 
banks  of  Indian  River^  reserved  a  tract  of  land  250  ft.  wide  on  either 
side  of  the  little  stream  feediag  the  U.  S.  S.  Jamestown's  water-trough. 
The  trail  is  about  two  and  a  half  miles  to  the  Cross,  a  steep  and  steady 
ascent,  first  following  the  stream  to  the  logger's  cabin.  The  dense 
underbrush  ceases  at  about  the  level  of  800  ft.,  and  beyond  every- 
thing is  covered  with  moss.  At  the  timber-line  are  beds  of  yellow  vio- 
lets and  acres  of  heathery  bryanthus  and  cassiopea,  daisies,  buttercups, 
anemones,  and  cyclamen.  The  view  of  the  Baranof  mountains,  Silver 
Bay,  the  ocean,  sound,  and  Mt.  Edgecuml  e,  with  Sitka  at  one's  feet, 
well  repay  the  climber  who  reaches  the  tall  wooden  Cross. 


:St\ 


Dixon  re- 
them,  and 
'ded  their 
Since  the 
nt  George 
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in  the  Co- 
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'5 
J:., 


SITKA   AND   VICINITY. 


123 


Verntovoi,  named  because  the  summit  was  thought  to  be  one  verst 
distant  from  the  Castle,  has  also  been  known  as  Popoff  Mountain,  the 
Pouce,  the  Arrow  Head,  and  Anchor  Peak — the  latter  because  a  snowy 
anchor  is  seen  from  the  N.  outlined  near  the  summit.  The  Verstovoi 
peak  cannot  be  reached  from  the  Jamestown  side.  The  climber  must 
circle  around  the  snow-fields  on  the  valley  side  to  reach  the  small  plat- 
form 3,216  ft.  above  the  bay.  A  record  was  loft  by  the  W.  U.  T.  sur- 
veyors who  reached  the  top  and  took  observations  in  18(>5,  and  the 
Jarpcstoioti's  officers  erected  a  flag-staff,  which  each  climbing  party  re- 
plants. The  peak  is  said  to  have  been  split  by  an  eartluiuake  in  the 
last  century,  exposing  the  smooth,  triangular  mass  shaped  like  an  arrow- 
head. By  climbing  the  slippery  grass  and  bryanthus  beds  on  the  Cross 
side  to  the  hanging  hemlock  grove,  one  may  see  the  great  tent  roof  of 
Mt.  Crillon  and  the  triple  peak  of  Mt.  Fairweather  lying  a  hundred 
miles  due  N. 

Excnrsions  in  the  Bay  and  Vicinity  of  Sitka. 

No  other  settlement  in  Alaska  offers  so  much  in  its  immediate 
neighbourhood  as  Sitka.  The  ascent  of  Verstovoi  is  the  only  land 
excursion  possible  from  the  town.  All  other  trips  involve  cruises  in 
canoe  or  in  sail-boat,  unless  a  launch  is  brought  from  Juneau  or  Killis- 
noo.  Shumakoff,  Clements,  Frobese,  and  other  lo'^".';  guides  will  under- 
take all  arrangements  for  sportsmen,  naturalists,  or  pure  pleasure-seek- 
ers. The  usual  rates  are  $2  a  day  for  a  canoe,  and  an  additional  per 
diem  for  each  oarsman.  Sail-boats  with  covered  cabins  cost  $6  to  $10 
a  day.  The  regular  day's  wages  for  camp  hands  and  others  is  $2.  The 
guides  expect  more. 

The  Harbour  Islands. — It  is  possible  to  make  a  canoe  or  fish- 
ing trip  among  the  harbour  islands  during  the  steamer's  regular  wait. 

Japonski,  opposite  the  Indian  village,  is  the  largest  of  the  130  Har- 
bour Islands.  It  measures  a  mile  in  length  and  is  a  half  mile  in 
width.  Its  name,  "  Japan,"  was  given  because  of  the  residence  there  of 
the  crew  of  a  Japanese  junk  wrecked  at  this  point  in  1805.  It  was  the 
site  of  a  large  native  village  in  Baranofs  time.  In  1840  Captain  Etholin 
built  a  magnetic  and  meteorological  observatory,  and  records  were  kept 
until  the  day  of  transfer.  General  Davis  reserved  all  the  harbour  isl- 
ands for  military  use,  and  Japonski  was  garrison,  stock-yard,  and  naval 
coal  station  in  turn.  Michael  Travers,  "  Duke  of  Japonski,"  lived 
there  and  cultivated  vegetable  gardens  and  hay-fields,  until  the  recla- 
mation of  the  land  for  Government  use  in  1890  drove  him  insane,  and  a 
special  agent  was  sent  from  Washington,  D.  C,  to  convey  hV.n  to  St. 
Elizabeth's  Asylum  near  that  city,  the  only  refuge  of  the  kind  available 
to  Alaskan  patients.  The  coal-sheds  and  powder-magazine  are  the 
only  buildings  besides  Travers's  cabin.  Etholin's  observatory  was 
burned  by  the  Indians  when  the  troops  left. 


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*-..  ^ 


COAST 
FROM  SANDY  BAY  TO  CAPE  EDWARD 

( Itussian.  aaxthoTitieB  ■with  correctiaiis 

"by  the  U. S.Coaat  Survey) 

1B82 


_M«J00' 


SOUNDINOS  IN  rATHOMS  . 


aoL 


Nauuiceil  liUes 


'4'  '\^ 


i:  EDWARD 


J3S|00' 


NamiceJ.  Mile» 
10 


124 


8ITKA    AND   VICINITY. 


.!>■>:: 


Harhour  Islimit  lies  S.  of  Jupoaxki,  and  contains  several  Indian 
rarhis  often  niistjikcn  for  sliainann'  f^raves,  and  Aleutnlci  Island  beyond 
is  the  site  of  trnek-giirdens  of  a  retired  marine.  The  ship  channel  lios 
between  Alentski  and  Kntkau  islands,  the  latter  the  home  of  a  ehict 
converted  nnd  baptized  by  Veniaminoflf,  and  who  related  to  the  latter 
much  of  the  legend  and  folk-lore  he  recorded. 

Makhnnti  (Hugged)  hhiml  \a  the  landmark  for  ships  from  the 
ocean.  It  was  chosen  for  a  light-house  site  in  1867,  and  Captain  Hearda- 
lee's  wooden  beacon  on  the  seaward  bluff  is  often  taken  fur  a  shaman's 
grave.  Siyntd  hhind  was  tlie  place  for  bonfires  to  light  and  lead  ships 
in  iiussian  days.  The  firing  of  a  gun  caused  the  beacon  on  the  citadel 
roof  to  fiasli  out,  and  men  were  in  waiting  to  light  the  signal-fires  that 
marked  the  course  into  the  harbour.  Departing  ships  were  blessed  by 
the  Russian  bishop  in  full  canonicals,  and  deck,  mainmast,  fiag,  anil 
crew  were  sprinkled  with  i'.:e  jewelled  holy-water  brush.  All  small 
boats  rowed  three  times  round,  singing  a  farewell,  and  nine  cheers  sped 
the  ship  as  the  sails  tilled. 

Sea  bass  may  be  caught  at  each  flood  tide  off  the  N.  shore  of  Ja- 
ponski,  and  on  tlie  S.  shore  between  it  and  tlie  bold  bluffs  of  Chaicoul 
Island.  Cod,  flounders,  and  sea  trout  rewind  the  angler,  and  any  na- 
tive boatman  knows  the  best  fishing-bai-  ^  and  trolling-grounds  and 
the  times  and  places  for  salmon  "  runs."  Between  Juponski  and  iSasaiui 
Island,  next  beyond,  W.  of  it,  is  a  sea  garden  worth  floating  over  to 
admire.  The  growths  of  sea-weed  and  submarine  plants  are  of  tropical 
luxuriance.  Fronds  as  large  as  a  banana  or  lysichton  leaf  crowd  stems 
80  ft.  long;  kelp  lines  100  and  200  ft.  long  are  coiled  on  the  surface, 
and  their  "  orange  heads  "  float  in  groups.  Coral  and  sponges  are  found 
in  the  bay,  the  teredo  is  as  destructive  as  in  the  trgpics,  and  strange 
drift  is  left  by  the  ocean  currents.  Susedniy  W.  of  Japonski,  is  the  most 
beautiful  of  the  islands — the  "  black  beach  "  on  the  S.  W.  shore  com- 
manding the  finest  view  of  Mt.  Edgecumbe.  Beds  of  large  blue-bells  and 
thickets  of  salmon-berries  are  found  on  all  the  islands,  and  they  are 
nesting-places  of  the  olive-bucked  thrushes,  whose  song  is  a  repeated 
"  Te  JJeum  !  Te  Deum  !  Te  Deum  /  "  in  ascending  notes  of  entrancing 
sweetness.  Crows,  the  red- footed  "oyster-catchers,"  sidle  over  all 
Alaska  beaches  in  search  of  clams,  but  find  abalones  on  these  islet 
shores,  pry  them  off  and  carry  them  to  the  tree-tops  to  devour.  These 
scavengers  are  guardian  spirits  and  the  great  Crow  is  tutelary  genius 
of  the  region.  Deceased  shamans  and  illustrious  ones  of  the  Crow- 
elan  are  supposed  to  assume  this  form,  and  this  reincarnation  saves 
them  from  native  shot  or  snare. 

The  Ascent  of  Mt.  Edgecnmbe. 

The  climbing  of  this  extinct  volcano  on  Kruzoff  Island  involves  an 
indefinite  time,  as  one  reaches  its  base  by  launch  or  sail-boat  after 
crossing  waters  open  to  the  heaviest  swells  when  southeast  winds  blow. 
Fogs  are  frequent,  and  the  waters  are  full  of  sunken  rocks.     Landing 


UlKl 


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HITKA    ANT)   VICINITY. 


125 


on  tlic  Sitka  Hide,  iIilm'C  iH  a  hard  tramp  for  5  or  7  iiiilos  through  a 
swampy  forest  to  the  actual  8U>pc.  In  favourable  weather  a  l)etter 
landing  may  be  made  in  a  cove  on  the  ocean  nlde,  whence  it  is  only  2 
or  3  miles  to  sloping  ground.  Once  out  on  the  open  lava  and  scorioo  it 
is  but  an  easy  walk  tip  an  incline,  and  the  crater  is  entered  by  a  gap  in 
the  southeast  rim.  The  snow  leaves  the  slopes  and  crater  entirely  in 
midsummer.  Steam  rises  from  many  sulphur-crusted  vent-holes,  and 
beautiful  specimens  of  sulphur,  lava,  and  volcanic  glass  arc  obtained. 
Several  women  have  made  the  ascent  in  recent  years. 

After  Tscliirlkow  charted  this  mountain  of  St.  La'.aria  it  was  noxt 
seen  by  Maurelle,  the  pilot  of  Heceta  and  Hodega  y  Qiindra's  expedition 
sent  out  by  the  Spanish  Viceroy  IJucarelly.  lie  enteied  "the  great 
bay  among  mountains  "  St.  Jucinth's  day,  August  16,  177^^,  named  the 
peok  San  Jacinto  and  the  bay  (Juadalupe.  La  P6rouse  next  s:iw 
this  peak  of  St.  Hyacinth,  and  then  Cook,  May  2,  177H,  named  it  Mt. 
Edgecumbe,  and  the  bay  the  Bay  of  Terrors.  Dixon  called  the  l)ay 
Norfolk  Sound,  and  Marehand  (1791)  took  his  predecessors  to  task  fo/ 
this  renaming.  "  Que  gagneroit  la  (i^ogi-aphie  h  ce  changem(!nt  de 
nom  ?  qu'  y  gagneroit  Viwmortel  Cook  "  ?  he  exclaimed,  when  the  natives 
made  him  understand  that  the  bay  was  Tchin-Kitane  (a  useful  ann). 
He  did  not  record  the  native  name — Tlughy  or  sleeping  mountain. 

Two  Kadiak  hunters  climbed  the  mountain  in  18()4  and  reported 
the  crater  filled  with  water.  Lisiansky  and  Lieutenant  Powalshin  as- 
cended in  1806,  and  found  "a  basin  2  miles  in  circumference  and  40 
fathoms  deep  filled  with  snow,"  July  23d.  Lisiansky  estiinated  the 
height  at  8,000  ft.,  with  forest  reachinj,  to  within  a  mile  an  1  a  half  of 
the  top.  Lutk3  was  told  (1827)  that  the  mountain  was  in  eruption  in 
1796  and  1804.  In  1867  Professor  Davidson  estinmted  its  height  at 
2,865  ft.  In  1886  Professor  William  Libby,  Jr.,  of  Princeton  College, 
climbed  to  the  crater's  rim  and  gave  its  height  as  8,782  ft.  The  whole 
mountain,  according  to  Prof.  Libbey,  is  only  a  parasitic  cone  on  a 
greater  volcanic  mass  of  wl.ich  the  C<imel\H  Buck,  N.  of  Edg(>cumbe,  was 
the  chief  vent-hol«.  The  oval  crater  in  the  Camel's  Back  is  5  miles  long 
and  3  miles  wide,  a  basin  1,600  ft.  deep,  with  an  internal  slope  of  alumt 
60°.  The  level  floor  is  covered  with  forests  and  open  parks,  with  sev- 
eral lakes.  The  Camel's  Back  rose  from  the  sea  cycle  ago,  and  built 
around  it  the  terraced  platforms  constituting  Kruzoff  Island.  Edge- 
cumbe was  formed  on  its  inert  slopes  only  a  few  score  centuries  ago. 

Sportsmen  find  many  attractions  within  the  18-mile  limits  of  the 
Kruzoff  shores.  There  are  bear  and  deer.  There  is  a  lake  on  the 
Sitka  side  where  rainbow  trout  may  be  caught.  There  are  many  clam 
beaches,  and  a  bay  where  Captain  Beardslee  found  as  many  soft-shell 
crabs  as  in  those  exceptional  seasons  when  Massett  Inlet  and  Prince  of 
Wales  bays  have  been  edged  with  broad  windrows  of  cast-off  shells. 


4 


ii 


■'^\ 


120 


SITKA.    AND   VICINITY. 


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K  -3,  .'* 


Silver  Bay  and  the  8itka  Mining  District. 

Silver  Bay,  or  Senrbrennikof  Bootka,  as  named  ."or  a  Siberian  ex- 
plorer killed  at  Copper  River,  is  the  Kuketic,  or  "  like  belonging  to 
black  {ish-men  "  of  the  natives.  It  op'ins  at  the  south  point  of  James- 
town Bay,  2^  miles  below  Sitko,  and  extends  for  6  miles  with  a  vidth 
of  less  than  half  a  mile  between  mountains  rising  precipitously  2,0' »0 
ft.  and  more.  Lakes  on  the  south  foot  of  Verstovoi  feed  Saw-riill  Creek: 
The  remains  of  the  Russian  crib  dam  and  flume  are  on  the  bank  a 
<|uartei  of  a  mile  from  the  raouth.  The  mill  was  burned  by  the  In- 
dians after  the  departure  of  i:he  troops.  Malma  or  Dolly  Varden  trout 
are  to  oe  caught  below  the  dam,  and  in  the  farther  waters  the  rarer 
beauties  with  the  rainbow  speckles  abide. 

Round  Mountain,  at  the  turn  of  the  fiord,  is  a  symmetrical  green 
landmark,  with  a  lofty  cave  on  its  east  side  into  which  a  canoe  may  be 
rowed  at  liigh  tide.  Kalnmpif s  Lund- Slide,  on  the  opposite  mountain 
wall,  .Darks  where  a  Russian  hunter  in  chasing  a  deer  encountered  a 
bear  just  as  the  earth  trembled  and  the  crust  of  the  mountain  slipped 
down  into  the  water.  The  deer  was  caught  by  the  branches  of  a  tree 
at  the  water's  edge,  and  Kalampy,  while  hanging  on  the  next  tree,  baw 
the  bear  -rown.  Bear  Bay,  the  first  indentation  on  the  east  shore  and 
home  of  a  famous  grizzly,  holds  a  magnificent  landscape  canon,  three 
massive  peaks  ranging  in  echelon  on  one  side  with  a  massive  broad- 
arrivjd  cross  outlined  by  the  snow  on  Kioxtlinaia's  summit — a  symbol 
seen  from  the  farthest  end  of  Sitka  Sound.  A  waggon-road  leads  up 
the  canon  to  a  grouji  of  mines. 

At  the  Cj^-ti  -ne  end  of  the  bay  the  Silver  Creek  Fall  shoots  down 
800  ft.  in  long  rapids,  the  last  leap  of  60  ft,  bringing  it  to  tide-waters. 
Ftxi'ia  the  wharf  of  the  Stewart  mine  a  road  leads  to  the  mill  and  tun- 
nels of  a  valuable  group  of  mines.  There  is  fine  fishing  in  Salmon 
Creek,  and  trails  lead  to  several  mines,  those  of  the  Great  Eastern 
Group  lying  on  the  divide  between  Silver  Bay  and  Gloubokoe  Lake  at 
an  elevation  of  6,500  ft. 

The  Oold  Mines. — The  Russian  Fur  Company's  officers  Dever  wanted 
to  discover  and  made  but  half-hearted  search  for  precious  minerals, 
their  charter  providing  that  any  lands  containing  minerals  should  be- 
long to  the  crown.  Mining  has  been  most  disastrous  to  fur-trading 
interests,  and  opposed  bv  such  everywhere.  Baranof  is  said  to  have 
knout^d  a  promyshlenik  who  brought  a  piece  of  gold  quartz  from 
Silver  Bay,  and  discouraged  prospecting  for  all  time.  Prof.  Blake 
reported  to  Mr.  Seward,  in  1807,  that  there  was  little  promise  of 
precious  metals  "  in  the  hard  conglomerate  or  grit  passing  into  argil  • 


THE   BARANOF   SHOBE   SOUTH    OF    SITKA. 


127 


lite"  ill  the  imraerliate  neighbourhood  of  Sitka.  In  1871  Edward 
Doj  le  found  float  gold  in  the  Silver  Bay  shores,  uncovered  a  quartz 
stringer  on  Round  Mountain,  and  another  on  Indian  River.  The  Haley 
and  Rodgers  lode,  on  Salmon  Creek,  was  the  first  worked  by  garrison 
officers.  The  Stewart  Mill,  on  the  neighbouring  claim,  was  built  in 
IS11,  and  the  Bald  Mountain  claims  were  worked  for  a  few  years. 
The  Juneau  discoveries  drew  miners  away,  and  the  district  was  vir- 
tually abandoned.  Governor  Swineford's  energy  caused  a  revival  of 
mining  interests  in  1885 ;  other  mills  were  built  and  work  pushed,  but 
a  second  lull  ensued  when  he  left,  and  for  several  seasons  only  pro- 
specting and  assessment  work  was  d'Au\  Differences  among  stockhold- 
ers and  want  of  means  have  prevented  any  of  the  mines  being  thor- 
oughly and  systematically  worked  for  any  time.  The  tons  of  high 
grade  ore  taken  out,  and  the  rich  specimens  obtained,  prov^e  the  ex- 
istence and  quality  of  the  lodes,  and  the  prosperity  of  the  region  is 
but  a  matter  of  time. 

The  Baranof  Shore  south  of  Sitka. 

The  tourist  can  visit  The  Redoubt,  or  Drashnikoff  settlement,  in 
the  Toyon's,  or  Ozerski  Bay,  12  miles  S.  of  Sitka,  and  return  in  a  day 
by  canoe ;  or  one  may  go  through  to  the  Hot  Springs  in  one  day's 
canoe  trip,  stopping  at  the  Redoubt  on  the  way. 

From  Sitka  the  course  leads  for  8  miles  through  a  maze  of  wooded 
islets  to  the  mouth  of  the  bay,  that  extends  4  miles  as  a  narrow  caSon 
or  rock  cutting  to  the  natural  dam  holding  the  waters  of  the  Glou- 
bokoe  Lake,  or  the  "  Deep  Sea."  Drashnikoff  Peak  rises  at  the  end 
of  the  bay  perpendicularly  from  the  water  1,5U0  ft.  The  Russians 
had  a  fortified  setLiement  and  jail  here,  and  cured  their  winter  sup- 
plies of  salmon.  There  were  2  flour-mills,  a  saw-mill,  tannery,  church, 
and  ""esidence  buildings,  within  a  stockaded  post,  and  substantial 
weirs  in  the  rapidvS  between  the  lake  and  be/.  Latke  visited  and 
described  the  Redoubt  in  1827,  and  Sir  George  Simpson  in  1844  The 
buildings  were  burned  by  the  natives  after  the  troops  left  Sitka,  and 
the  stockade  destroyed.  The  pioneer  Alaskan  cannery  established  at 
old  Sitka  in  1878  was  moved  to  the  Redoubt,  but  closed  in  1890  and 
for  several  seasons,  and  work  conducted  at  Red  Bay,  20  miles  below, 
where  the  catch  of  several  salmon  streams  could  be  centred. 

Gloubokoe  Lake,  8  miles  long  and  less  than  three-quarters  of  a 
mil«  wide,  has  a  depth  of  60  fathoms,  and  is  chiefly  fed  by  a  large 
stream  at  the  N.  E.  end.  The  stream  may  be  ascended  3  miles,  «nd 
triils  lead  from  the  banks  to  the  mines  on  Bald  Mountain  and  down 
the  range,  and  over  the  divide  to  Salmon  Creek  and  Silver  Bay.    There 


ll 

''III 

'I 


'HU; 


128 


thp:  baranof  shork  south  '>V  sitka. 


(Ml, 


1.^: ; 


■\jLL 


is  a  fine  glacier  on  the  mountain  at  the  E.  ^md  -A  the  lake,  and  the 
mountain  walls  rise  precipitously  on  either  sicle  of  the  flooded  canon, 
f'lom  the  S.  E.  end  of  the  lake  a  portage  (A  a  misle  crosses  a  i.>w  divide 
to  Hot  Springs,  or  KInkaeh«^ff  iJay.  Th*'  Ked«»lM>  m  mm  admirable 
Ijeudtjuarters  foi-  .^sportsmen  or  anglers,  and  perm'ftidion  miKj  be  had  tc 
WMe  SQine  of  the  abandoned  cannery  buildings  for  shelter. 

The  White  Sulphnr  Hot  Springs. 

At  the  highest  tide,  a  chain  of  intricate  passes  may  be  used  by 
canoes,  and  several  miles  saved  in  the  voyage  from  the  Redoubt  to 
Hot  Springs  Bay.  It  is  worth  several  hours'  delay  to  thread  these 
labyrinths  through  the  trees  and  rofk-",  and  it  furnishes  the  ideal 
water  trip  of  the  archiix^lago,  bringing  more  of  lan<!i'c'apc  beauty  in 
range  than  any  othei'  three  hours  of  canoeing.  Tlie  Hot  Spring**  cura- 
tive qualities  were  long  known  to  the  na-tlvec,  and  th*-  bay  was  neutral 
ground  where  all  tiibes  met,  but  none  built  a  j^rmaaent  vilU^i^e. 

Lisiansky  discovered  or  explored  the  h#ay  in  JMj$,  mA  spcwt  a 
week  theie.  Lutke  mentions  his  visiting  *'>'>ii  one  IwMise  at  the  springs 
in  182*7  and  in  1837  Captain  Belcher  ^poke  of  the  »^v,--mills  at 
"  Les  Sources^  or  warm  springs,  which  serves  as  a  sort  of  Harrow- 
gate  to  the  colony."  Hir  George  Simpson  enjoyed  his  stay  ii>  the 
comfortable  quarters  at  the  hospital.  In  1852  the  natives  attacked 
the  settlement,  burned  the  Ijuildings,  and  drove  the  invalids  tc  the 
woods.  All  of  them  reached  Sitka,  although  compelled  to  cross  the 
mountains  in  the  dead  of  winter.  The  new  stockaded  post  con  tail' ed  a 
hospital,  chapel,  residences  for  two  doctors,  and  a  pharmacist,  and 
there  was  daily  communication  by  steam-launch  with  Sitka.  There 
were  gardens  and  hay-tields  on  the  great  cleared  hillside,  and  the  sub- 
terranean heat  still  forces  a  rich  vegetation.  The  buildings  were  all 
burned  l»y  the  natives  after  the  departure  of  the  troops  from  Sitka. 

By  an  oversight,  the  Hot  Springs  were  omitted  from  the  list  of  lands 
reserved  for  Government  use,  an<l  this  tract  was  taken  up  by  a  Sitka 
merchant,  who  has  built  a  group  of  cottages  and  a  rude  bath-house. 
Arrangements  for  the  use  of  these  cottages  may  be  made  in  Sitka, 
where  the  keys  are  kept.  A  charge  of  50  cents  a  night  is  made  for 
each  person  sleeping  in  the  hay-filled  bunks  of  the  cottages,  using  the 
cooking-stoves  and  fire-wood. 

The  White  Sulphur  Spring  bubbles  from  a  gem-like  pool  and 
crevices  among  the  rocks,  and  has  a  temp<'rature  of  155°  Fahr  The 
other  spring  has  a  tentperature  of  122  ,  and  both  are  impregnated 
with  sulphur,  iron  chlorine,  and   majjruesia.     They  are  sovereign  for 


<rn  for 


"TO   WESTWARD"    FROM    SITKA   TO   UNALA8KA.     129 

rheumatism  and  skin  diseases,  and  are  said  to  be  the  most  vahiable 
springs  medicinally  of  any  N.  of  the  Harrison  Hot  Springs  on  the 
Fraser  River. 

The  extensive  meadows  and  gardens  cleared  by  the  Russians  are 
relapsing  to  wildernesses  again,  and  mosquitoes  are  as  many  and  venom- 
ous as  in  Liaiansky's  day.  There  is  a  Tlingit  legend  that  the  mosquito 
was  originally  a  giant  spider,  but  an  evil  spi.'t  threv  him  in  the  fire, 
where  he  shrivelled  to  his  present  size  and  flew  away,  with  a  coal  of 
fire  in  his  mouth,  with  vhich  he  retaliates  upon  mankind.  Humming- 
birds nest  in  the  trees,  and  thrushes  call  from  island  to  shore. 

The  mountains  behind  the  bay  are  full  of  game,  and  the  black-tailed 
deer  may  be  easily  found,  or  lured  by  the  low,  wailing  sound  made  by 
blowing  on  a  blade  of  grass  held  between  the  thumbs.  Sportsmen 
have  had  bear-hunting  in  the  dense  berry  thickets,  and  there  are  sev- 
eral trout  streams  near. 

One  of  the  finest  views  of  Mt.  Edgecumbe  is  from  the  Hot  Springs 
hillside,  the  hyacinthine  peak  seeming  to  float  enchanted  beyond  the 
long,  island-dotted  water  foreground.  The  ball  of  the  July  sun  drops 
evenly  within  the  crater's  edges,  with  the  most  siiperb  colour  pano- 
rama that  northern  skies  and  sea  can  summon,  and  not  an  hour  of  the 
long  drawn  summer  sunsets  should  be  missed  by  those  who  visit  the 
steaming  liillside  ))y  the  ocean. 

"To  westward"  from  Sitka  to  Unalaska,  along  the 

Continental  Shore. 

A  steamer  of  the  North  American  Commercial  Co.  leaves  Sitka  for 
Unalaska  upon  the  arrival  of  alternate  mail  steamets  from  the  Sound 
(luring  seven  months  in  the  year  and  on  or  about  the  \\M\\  day  of  Juno, 
July,  and  August,  when  possible.  The  V.  C  S.  S.  Co.  allow  stop-over 
{H'ivileges  to  those  holding  its  excur^iion  tickets,  and  the  opportunity  is 
given  the  toniist  to  see  Mt.  St.  Elias,  a  different  scenic  panorama,  and 
the  strange  life  in  the  farthest  and  most  out-of-the-way  region  of  the 
United  States.  The  steam.r  calls  at  Yakutat,  Nuchek,  Kadiak,  Karluk, 
Unga,  and  Sand  Point,  giving  tourists  opportunity  to  see  everything 
of  interest  on  or  near  the  route,  within  the  27  or  30  days  scheduled  for 
the  round  trip  of  2,500  miles  from  Sitka.  The  fare,  $120  for  the  round 
trip,  includes  meals  and  berths  going  and  coming,  board  and  lodging 
at  the  N.  A.  0.  Co.'s  house  at  Dutch  HarI)our,  Unalaska,  and  the  trip 
to  Bogoslov  bevond  Unalaska.     The  steamer  is  staunch  and  well  offi- 


if 


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130    "TO   WESTWARD"   FROM   SITKA   TO   UNALA8KA. 

cered,  and  all  the  accommodations  for  the  22  cabin  passengers  are  above 
deck.  In  midsummer  smooth  passages  may  be  expected.  The  Kadiak 
and  Unalaska  regions  contain  the  oldest  Russian  settlements,  but  they 
had  no  regular  communication  with  the  rest  of  the  world  until  the 
establishment  of  this  mail  route  in  1 891.  Up  to  that  time  even  criminals 
were  sent  lo  Sitka  for  trial  by  way  of  San  Francisco.  The  tourist  ser- 
vice was  inaugurated  in  1893.  Passage  can  be  engaged  only  from  the 
N.  A.  C.  Co.'s  agent  at  Sitka. 


V,  . 


.if 


From  Sitka  to  Yakntat. 

The  westward  steamer's  course  is  directly  out  from  the  harbour  to 
the  open  ocean  and  around  Mt.  Edgecurabe.  Mt.  St.  Elias  has  been 
seen  from  Salisbury  Sound,  at  the  N.  end  of  Kruzoff  Island,  and  on  any 
clear  day  is  vicible  160  miles  at  sea. 

There  pre  but  two  indentations  in  the  plateau  bordering  the  ocean 
from  Cross  Sound  to  Vakutat  Bay,  and  these,  Lituya  Bay  and  Dry  Bay, 
have  no  commercial  importance. 

The  plateau  supports  four  great  peaks — Mt.  La  Pdrouse  (11,300  ft.), 
Mt.  Crillon  (15,900  ft.),  Lituya  Mt.  (10,000  ft.),  and  Mt.  Fairweather 
(16,500  ft.).  The  Crillon  and  La  PSrouse  Glacier  join  and  front  on  the 
ocean  for  2  miles  just  N.  of  Icy  Cape. 

Lituya  Bay,  40  miles  N.  of  Cape  Spencer,  cuts  \n  6  miles  to 
the  base  of  Lituya  Mt.  in  T-shape,  and  the  cross-piece  is  8  miles  in 
length. 

It  presents  the  greatest  dangers  to  navigation.  The  tide  enters  in  a 
bore,  and  it  can  only  be  run  at  slack  water.  La  Porouse  lost  two  boats' 
crews  in  this  bore  in  I786,  and  erected  a  wooden  monument  to  their 
memory  on  Cenotaph  Island  within  the  bay.  Dr.  Dall  surveyed  the  bav 
in  18V4,  described  his  entering  with  the  tide  as  "saihng  down-hill,"  and 
epitomized  Its  scenery  as  *'  a  sort  of  Yosemite  Valley,  retaining  its  gla- 
ciers, and  with  its  floor  submerged  600  or  800  ft."  Lieutenant  G.  T. 
Emmons  explored  it,  and  crossed  overland  to  Diy  Bay.  He  then  learned 
the  native  legend  of  "  the  two  men  of  Lituya,"  who,  assuming  tho  shape 
of  bears,  sit  at  either  side  of  the  entrance  holding  a  iiail-cloih  just  be- 
neath the  surface,  and  rudelv  tossing  any  incautious  canoeman  who 
paddles  across  it.  Placer  mining  has  been  successfully  conducted  on 
the  shores  of  the  bay  since  1889. 

Dry  Bay  ia  a  shallow  lagoon  at  the  delta  of  the  Akekh  River, 
which  rises  near  the  Chilkat's  source  and  flows  in  behind  Mt.  Fair- 


m: 


"TO   WESTWARD"    FROM   SITKA   TO   UN  ALASKA.     131 

weather  through  the  depression  noted  by  Captain  Cook.  It  was  ex- 
plored from  source  to  mouth  by  the  Frank  Leslie  Expedition  of  1890, 
along  the  old  trail  used  by  Klohkutz's  Chilkats.  This  glacial  river  is 
crowded  with  salmon  in  their  season. 

Yakutat  Bay,  45  miles  above  Dry  Bay,  is  only  an  indentation  of 
the  coast  curving  inward  some  20  miles,  and  the  whole  force  of  the 
north  Pacific  sweeps  into  it,  rendering  landing  difficult  and  dangerous 
at  all  times.  The  hay  always  contains  much  floating  ice  from  the  gla- 
ciers at  its  head,  and  a  heavy  surf  beats  on  the  St.  Elias  shore. 

There  is  an  Indian  village,  tiading-store,  and  Moravian  mission  at 
Fort  Mnlffrave,  opposite  Khantaak  Island,  where  Baranof  established  a 
colony  of  Siberian  convicts.  Several  yhips  were  built  there,  but  the 
natives  burned  the  fort  and  massacred  the  eettlers.  There  was  great 
excitement  in  1880  at  the  discovery  of  gold  in  the  black-sand  beaches, 
and  in  1883-'86-'88  there  were  considerable  mining  Cui.^ps.  By  using 
the  same  rotary  hand  amalgamators  as  on  Calif ornian  g'>ld  beaches,  as 
much  as  $40  a  day  to  the  man  was  realized.  The  Yakulat  chief  ex- 
acted licenses  and  royalty  from  the  unprotected  miners.  A  tidal  wave 
heaped  the  beach  with  windrows  of  dog-fi.>'.-  which,  decaying  in  the  hot 
summer  sun,  soaked  the  sands  with  oil  and  the  mercury  could  not  act. 
The  miners  moved  to  a  new  beach ;  u  tidal  wave  washed  all  the  black  sands 
avay,  and  the  camp  was  a')andoned.  The  sea  has  .'•ince  been  restoring 
the  black  sands.  A  vein  of  good  coal  was  found  a  mile  and  a  *.ialf  in- 
land and  300  ft.  above  the  bay,  amd,  but  for  the  difficulty  of  loading 
ships  in  that  bay,  the  coal  problem  would  be  solved  for  all  the  Sitkan 
region.  Yakutat  village  contains  some  original  Tlingit  lodges,  and  the 
Yakutat  women  are  the  finest  basket-weavers  on  the  coast. 

In  1890  Captain  C.  L.  Hooper,  U.  S.  R.  M.,  pushed  into  the  head  of 
Malaspina's  Disenchautmcid  Bay,  60  miles  beyond  the  point  where  the 
Spanish  explorer  repre.-  entcd  the  wat^r-line  as  ending,  and  discovered 
the  Dalton  and  Hubbard  tide-water  glaciers.  In  1891  Prof.  Russell  ex- 
plored the  bay  farther  in  a  uunoe,  and  found  it  l)onding  sharply  south- 
ward and  extending  for  another  60  miles  to  a  level  {)rairie  country  at 
the  foot  of  Mt.  Fail  weather.  Prof.  Russell  charted  the  bay  and  named 
Mts.  Unana,  Ruhamah,  and  Pintu. 


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132     "TO   WESTWARD"    FROM   SITKA   TO   UNALA8KA. 

Mt.  St.  Elias. 

Since  Bering  sighted  the  Bolshoi  Shopka  ("great  peak")  on  St. 
Elias  day,  1*741,  it  has  been  the  goal  of  many  navigators  and  explorers, 
and  their  records  of  its  height,  latitude,  and  longitude  are: 

Height  and  Position  of  Mt.  St.  Elias. 


Date. 

Authority. 

Height. 

Utitude. 

LonijIliKie. 

1778 

Cook* 

12,672  ft. 

17,8.Vl  ft. 


17,a50  ft. 
16,938  " 
16,938  " 
16,758  " 

14,970  " 
19.500±100  " 

(estimated) 
18,500  ft. 

15,350  " 

18,100±100  " 
18,100±100  " 

1786 

La  PeroiiHi' 

60° 

15' 

00" 

140'' 

10'  00" 

1787 

Portlock  and  Dixon  * 

Douf^laf  s  * 

1788 

1791 

Maiappiiia 

•   ■ 

60 
60 

17 
22 

35 
30 

140 
140 

52    17 

1794 

Vanconvcr 

39   00 

1887 

Bt'lclier 

1847 

KiiHHian         llydrographic 
Chart,  1378 

CO 
60 
60 
60 

60 
60 

21 
22 
21 
17 

21 
20 

00 
36 
30 
30 

00 
45 

141 
140 
140 
140 

141 
141 

00   00 

1847 

Tebenkof  (Notes) 

.54   00 

1849 
1872 

Tetenkof  (Chart  VII) 

Bacii.  Can.  Inseln 

54  00 
51    00 

1874 
1877 

English  Admiralty  Chart 
2172 

V.  S.  (oast  Survey 

Prof.  Chas,  Taylor,  Lieut. 
C.  E.  S.  Woodt 

00  00 
00    12 

1886 

Lieut.  F.  Schwatka,  Prof. 
William   Libby,  Jr.,  A. 
W.  Seton-Karr  % 

W.    H.    Toi)ham,    Edwin 
Topham,   William  Wil- 
liams, George  Broke 

Mark    B.    Kerr,    topogra- 
pher II 

.... 

1888 

1890 

1891 

Prof.    I.    C.    Russell    (for 
National  Geographic  So- 
ciety)   

60 

17 

51 

140 

55    30 

1892 

Turner,    McGrath    (U.  S. 
Coast  Survey) 

*  No  observations  made. 

X 

Geographi 


.,w  v,.,^.^.  ,..>.v,..>. v.^.  t  Indians  obliged  them  to  turn  back. 

New  York  Times  Expedition.   Reached  Chaix  Hills.   No  observations  made 
National   Geographic  Society's  Expedition,  commanded  by  Prof.  I.  C. 
Russell. 


It  was  reported  as  emitting  smoke  and  vapour  in  1830,  and  in  18-17, 
at  the  time  of  the  great  Sitka  earthquake,  flame  and  ashes  came  from 
its  summit. 

The  ascent  of  Mt,  St.  Elias  offers  the  longest  snow-climb  in  the 
world  outside  ,"  arctic  or  antarctic  regions.  The  line  of  perpetual 
snow  is  at  3,000  ft.  Fuel  and  supplies  must  be  carried  from  the  stari, 
and  weeks  spent  in  tents  on  the  ice. 

The  members  of  the  Topham  Expedition  were  all  experienced  Alpine 
Club  clinibers,  and  were  tirst  to  stand  on  Mt.  St.  Elias  slopes.     They 


SKETCH  MAP 

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"TO   WESTWARD"    FROM   BITKA   TO    UN  ALA  SKA.     133 


iiHcended  from  Icy  Bay  to  the  lira  of  the  crater  on  the  S.  E.  side,  a 
point  11,460  ft.  by  aneroid  mciiHurenient.  Mr.  WiniiiniH,  of  New  Lon- 
(Ion,  the  only  American  of  the  party,  left  a  tin  box  containing  a  United 
Stilted  flag  art  a  record  at  that  point.  The  expedition  of  tlie  National 
(icographic  Society  of  ISDO,  imder  Prof.  I.  C.  Russell,  crossed  Yakutat 
iJay  and  reached  a  height  of  9,500  ft.  on  the  E.  face  of  the  mountain 
ou  the  Keivton  Olacicr,  Jn  1891  Prof.  Russell  was  sent  again  by  the 
.-ame  society.  Six  lives  were  lost  in  landing  in  the  surf  at  Icy  Buy,  and 
I'rof.  Russell  reached  the  elevation  of  14,500  ft.  on  the  N.  side  of  the 
mountain,  when  driven  back  by  storms  and  scarcity  of  provisions.  He 
explored  the  plateau  of  the  MahiRplna  Glacier  from  Icy  Bay  to  Disen- 
cliantment  Bay  on  the  return. 

The  observations  of  the  U.  S.  Coast  and  Geodetic  Society  party  in 
1892  were  for  the  purpose  of  continuing  Messrs.  Turner  and  McGrath's 
woik  on  the  international  boundary  line,  and  establishing  the  longitude 
(){■  Mt.  St.  Elias.  It  is  now  definitely  accepted  as  within  tl.u  United 
States  lines,  and  as  a  natural  corner-stone  or  monument  sufficiently 
marking  the  line  of  the  Hist  meridian. 

The  full  accounts  of  the  latei'  expeditions  to  Mt.  St.  Elias  since  186*7 
will  be  found  in  the  following  publications : 

Karr,  H.  W.  Seton.  "  Shores  and  Alps  of  Alaska."  London : 
Proceedings  of  Royal  Geog.  Soc,  London.     Vol.  IX.     1887. 

Kkrr,  Mark  B.     Scribner's  Magazine,  March,  1891. 

LiBBKY,  Prof.  William,  Jr.  Bulletin  Am.  Geog.  Soc,  New  York, 
1886, 

Russell,  Prof.  Israel  C.  Century  Magazine,  April,  1891,  and 
June,  1892.  Natl.  Geog.  Soc.  Magazine,  W^ashington,  D.  C,  May  29, 
1891.  Am.  Journal  of  Science,  March,  1892.  Thirteenth  Annual  Re- 
port, Director  of  U.  S.  Geol.  Survey,  1892. 

Topiiam,  II.  W.     Alpine  Journal,  Lond(m,  August,  1889. 

Williams,  William.     Scribner's  Magazine,  April,  1889. 

Wood,  C.  E.  S.     Century  Magazine,  July,  1882. 

Continental  Alaska. 

While  the  steamer  waits  at  Yakutat,  there  is  in  full  view  the  mag- 
nlKcent  line  of  the  St.  Elias  Alps  towering  in  the  sky  above  the  low, 
green  forest  land.  Upon  leaving,  the  ship  skirts  along  the  front  of  the 
Mdhifipina  Glacier,  which  borders  the  ocean  for  more  than  60  miles, 
with  the  sea  breakin,'  lull  -  on  its  ice-cliffs  in  places.  Mt.  St.  Elias, 
Mt.  Cook,  and  Mt.  Va  icouA-r  are  easily  distinguished  by  their  great 
height.  There  is  no  bi  ik  in  the  mainland  mountain  panorama  from 
Edgecurabe  to  Makushin,  1,250  miles,  and  in  this  respect  the  voyage 
iri  unparallelled. 


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134    ««TO   WEBTWARD*'    FROM   SITKA    TO   UNALASKA. 

The  Copper  River  region  was  believed  to  be  an  El  Dorndo  >)y  the 
Russians,  but  their  efforts  to  explore  it  failed.  Rufus  Serrebrennikot 
and  his  men  were  murdered  before  they  hud  explored  the  liver's  luoutli. 

General  MilesV  first  expedition  under  Lieutenant  Aliercroinbic, 
U.  H.  A.,  in  1884,  failed  to  ascend  the  river  and  come  out  by  the 
Chilkat  country.  A  second  expedition,  in  1885,  was  led  by  Lieiitenuut 
H.  T.  Allen,  U.  S.  A.,  who  ascended  the  CV>/>y>e»',  crossed  the  divide  t<» 
the  Tennna,  sailed  down  that  stream  to  the  Yukon,  and  explored  the 
Koyukuk  River  before  returning  to  San  Franclscii  via  St.  Michaels. 
His  report  (Forty-ninth  Congress,  second  session.  Senate  Executive 
Document,  No.  126)  gives  a  detailed  account  of  the  trip;  of  the 
magnificent  Milen  Glacier,  which  fronts  in  ice-cliffs  for  (5  miles  on  tin- 
banks  of  Copper  River ;  of  WooWs  Canon,  40  yards  wide,  with  perpen 
dicular  walls ;  and  of  the  smoking  cone  of  Mt.  Wrangel,  which  he  re- 
duced from  fabled  height  to  an  actual  17,500  ft.  No  mountains  of 
pure  copper  were  found,  nor  anything  to  induce  others  to  run  the  risk  u{ 
starvation  in  the  almost  uniidiabited  country.  In  1  A)\  Lieutenant 
bchwatka  and  Dr.  Hayes  came  out  to  the  sea  by  Copper  River,  iifter 
their  great  circuit  of  the  interior  from  Taku  Inlet  to  the  Yukon  and 
White  rivers. 

Prince  William's  Sonnd  and  its  Great  Glaciers. 

Nachck,  or  Port  Etches,  is  at  the  entrance  of  Prince  William's 
Sound,  as  Captain  Cook  named  the  Chugach  Gulf  when  he  keeled  and 
mended  his  ships  at  Snug  Corner  Bay,  1778.  Shelikoff  came  in  17h;}, 
and  Baranof  built  the  ships  that  took  his  first  expeditiim  to  Sitku. 
The  Russian  trading-post  was  known  as  the  Redoubt  Constantine,  and 
the  furs  of  the  Copper  River  country  are  brought  to  Nuchek,  where 
there  is  a  salmon-cannery  and  trading-post.  In  18i)2  the  ViCioria 
sealing  fleet  rendezvoused  off  Nuchek  to  meet  their  supply  steamer 
Coquitlam,  revictual,  and  transfer  their  catch  of  Pacific  sealskins  be- 
fore venturing  into  Bering  Sea.  Captain  C.  L.  ncM)per,  with  the  reve 
nue  cutter  Coruin,  surprised  them  in  the  act,  and  the  Coquitlam,  with 
her  valuable  cargo,  was  seized  and  taken  to  Sitka  for  a  violation  of 
U.  S.  revenue  laws  in  transferring  cargo  without  authority  of  the  cus- 
toms district. 

The  Chugach  Alps  surrounding  Piince  WiHiam\s  Sound  hold 
some  of  the  grandest  scenery  of  the  Alaska  coast  and  the  tide-wnUi' 
glaciers  in  the  recesses  of  the  sound  even  surpass  those  of  southeasiem 
Alaska.  Vancouver  describes  the  gloomily  magnificent  sound,  and  Mr. 
Whidby  felt  the  ground  shake  when  6  miles  away  from  the  falling  ice. 
Prof.  Davidson  had  a  glimpse  of  the  ice  falls  in  1867,  and  Russian  otli- 


Scale  1  :  iW.noo.noo. 


020  miles. 


(Jhief  Nouff-t  nf  Al<i.t!:iin    Kxi>hneis. 


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1 

m 

"TO  WESTWARD"   FROM  SITKA  TO  UNALASKA.     135 


cers  told  him  of  one  glacier  that  showed  a  peculiar  rose-red  tint  in  a 
certain  light.  Dr.  Dall  visited  the  sound  in  1874,  and  declared  the  gla- 
cial landscapes  the  finest  of  their  kind.  Mr.  SetonKarr  makes  reference 
to  them  in  his  "  Shores  and  Alps  of  Alaska."  The  dangers  of  navigation 
deter  large  vessels  from  attempting  cruises  in  the  unsurveyed  waters, 
and  the  floating  ice  menaces  canoes,  so  that  the  number,  size,  movement, 
and  general  features  of  these  Chugach  ice  streams  await  exploration. 


Cook's  Inlet  and  the  Kenai  Peninsula. 

Cook's  Inlet  extends  inland  160  miles  between  the  Alaska  or 
Chignik  range  and  the  mountainous  Kenai  Peninsula.  Sheltered  by  the 
great  barrier  on  the  west,  its  shores  enjoy  a  different  climate  from  any 
of  the  coast  region  south  of  it,  and  the  warm,  cloudless  summers  won 
Cook's  Inlet  the  name  of  the  Summer-land  from  the  Russians.  The 
best  agricultural  land  lies  along  the  Kenai  shore  of  the  Inlet,  and  the 
Russian  company  established  five  colonies  of  their  pensioners  in  this  gar- 
den spot,  where  they  raised  crops  and  cattle,  and  still  continue  to  do  so. 

The  Inlet  is  renowned  for  its  scenery,  which  Captain  Cook  was  first 
to  extol.  He  discovered  the  great  estuary  during  his  search  for  a  pas- 
sage to  Hudson  Bay,  passing  the  south  point  of  Kenai  Peninsula  on  the 
birthday  of  the  Princess  Elizabeth,  May  21, 1778.  The  mainland  point,  40 
miles  across  from  this  Cape  Elizabeth,  was  named  for  Dr.  Douglass,  Canon 
of  Windsor.  Captain  Cook  took  possession  in  the  name  of  His  Majesty, 
and  buried  coins  and  records  in  a  bottle  at  Possession  Point  at  the  head 
of  the  Inlet,  and  Vancouver  searched  for  these  records  in  vain.  Cook 
did  not  name  the  place  on  his  map,  referring  to  it  as  the  Great  River 
in  his  text.  Lord  Sandwich  wrote  in  "  Cook's  River "  after  the  great 
navigator's  death.  Cape  Elizabeth  is  550  miles  from  Sitka  and  1,670 
miles  from  San  Francisco. 

Coal-Fiddis. — Portlock  mentioned  the  coal-veins  in  Graham  or  Eng- 
lish Harbour,  near  Cape  Elizabeth,  in  1787,  and  the  Russians  afterward 
worked  them  on  a  considerable  scale,  and  exported  much  of  this  lignite 
to  California  previous  to  the  discovery  of  the  Vancouver  coal.  Tram- 
ways, stone  piers,  and  decaying  buildings  are  memorials  to  the  im- 
mense suras  sunk  by  the  Russian  company  and  some  San  Francisco 
merchants  who  shared  in  the  enterprise  at  Coal  Harbour  in  Chugachik 
or  Kachemak  Bay.  Recently,  interest  in  these  coal-mines  '  .ts  been  re- 
vived, and  also  in  the  old  works  near  Fort  Kenai,  where  the  equal  of 
Xanaimo  coal  was  promised. 

Fort  Kenai,  the  old  Redoubt  St.  Nicholas,  was  garrisoned  by 
U.  S.  troops  for  a  few  years  after  the  transfer.  There  are  two  trading 
stations  and  three  canneries  in  the  Inlet,  and  king  salmon  weighing  100 
pounds  are  often  caught.     Gold  was  found  in  small  quantities  by  a 


13C     "TO   WESTWAKD"    FROM   SITKA    Tn   UNAI.ASKA. 


,vm 


RuKi«iun  enpnccr  in  1855,  iind  prospectors  are  ctiinped  ut  inuny  places 
along  shore  every  sunnner. 

The  Volcanoes. — Cook's  Inlet  is  the  finest  Alnsknn  pleasure- 
gronnd  for  scientists,  sportsmen,  anglers,  artists,  and  yachtsmen,  and 
its  climate  enhances  all  attractions.  A  chain  of  active  volcanoes  ex- 
tends along  the  W.  shore.  Iliamna,  the  great  volcano  of  the  Inlet 
(12,0(5(1  ft.),  was  named  Miran<la,  the  Admirable,  hy  t'le  Spanish  navi- 
gator. It  is  snow-dad,  but  steam  and  smoke  issue  from  two  craters 
near  the  summit,  and  when  arrested  for  any  time  fre(]uent  earthquakes 
are  felt.  Iliamna  was  ascended  by  a  party  sent  from  the  Imperial  Acad- 
emy of  Sciences  at  St.  Petersburg  in  1H52,  and  by  several  parties  of 
IJ.  S.  officers  while  the  garrison  was  maintained  at  Fort  Kenui,  40  miles 
distant  acro.ss  the  Inlet.  There  was  an  eruption  in  1854,  and  in  1861» 
climbers  lound  running  lava  near  the  lower  crater,  a  vast  oval  bowl 
full  of  sulphur  crystals,  and  were  driven  from  the  upper  crater  by  the 
volumes  of  dense  black  smoke.  Many  hot  springs  occur  on  the  slopes, 
and  the  heat  furnishes  a  luxuriant  growth  of  trees  in  the  valleys  and 
ravines.     The  natives  have  many  superstitions  concerning  it. 

Cvoryalya,  or  the  Redoubt  (11,270  ft.),  stands  N.  of  Iliamna, 
and  smokes  and  steams  on  a  lesser  scale.  It  was  in  eru])tion  in  1 8C7, 
and  ashes  fell  to  a  depth  of  one  inch  and  a  half  on  Kadiak  Island,  165 
miles  away. 

Augustiii,  on  an  island  near  the  mouth  of  the  Inlet,  is  a  sym- 
metrical cone  whose  fires  are  extinct. 

A  trail  leads  from  the  native  village  in  Kamishak  Bay,  S.  of  Ili- 
amna, for  7  miles  through  a  gap  in  the  mountains  to  a  chain  of  lakes 
discharging  at  the  end  of  15  nules  into  Iliamna,  the  largest  lake  in 
Alaska.  Iliamna  Lake,  90  miles  long  and  from  30  to  40  miles 
wide,  is  an  inland  reservoir  or  hatchery  of  king  salmon,  who  use  the 
Kvichak  River  as  their  highway  to  Bering  Sea.  This  chain  of  water- 
courses and  the  short  portage  are  used  by  huntei-s  who  come  over  from 
Bristol  Bay  to  the  sea-otter  rocket  ies  along  the  Cook  Inlet  and  Sheli- 
kofif  shores. 

Either  shore  offers  unlimited  opportunities  to  sportsmen.  The 
only  herds  of  wild  reindeer  remaining  in  Alaska  are  in  the  regions 
along  the  Alaskan  and  Kenai  ranges.  The  big  brown  bear  of  Cook's 
Inlet  has  world-wide  fame,  and  these  monsters  are  the  great  prizes  of 
native  hunters.  Moose,  caribou,  mountain-goat,  mountain-sheep,  and 
deer  are  found.     There  are  many  trout  streams  besides  the  salmon 


KA. 

luiiy  plui'C's 

II  pleusui-e- 
tsincn,  ami 
Icanoes  ex- 
r  the  Inlet 
anish  nuvi- 
Lwo  fraters 
iirtliquaki's 
erial  Acad- 
parties  of 
li,  4<»  miles 
id  in  1 86i( 
oval  bowl 
iter  by  the 
the  slopes, 
ml  leys  and 

)f  Iliamna, 

>n  in  1867, 

aund,  1<>5 

!3  a  sym- 

,  S.  of  Ili- 
1  of  lakes 
St  lake  in 
40  miles 
0  use  the 
of  water- 
over  from 
and  Sheli- 


eu. 


The 


regions 

of  Cook's 

prizes  of 

leep,  and 

e  salmon 


"TO   WESTWARD"    FROM   SITKA   T(>   UNALAKKA.     137 

rivers  on  the  E.  shore,  and  wild  fowl  haunt  the  marshes  in  that  same 
region. 

The  finest  waterfalls  in  Alaska  leap  from  the  cliffs  along  the  Inlet, 
and  the  alternation  of  snow-peaks,  volcanoes,  forested  slopes,  and  fer- 
tile prairies  continually  charm  the  eye.  There  are  glaciers  in  the 
mountains  on  either  shore  of  the  Inlet.  Those  facing  the  Kachemak 
Bay  coalmines  were  explored  and  named  by  the  Russian  scientists  in 
1862,  and  their  map  showing  the  Grewingk,  the  W<tMWMen»ki^  the 
Boroshin,  and  the  Siid  glaciers  is  included  in  the  Glctscher-Karte, 
of  Bergbaus's  Fhysikal  Atlas. 

TIDES. 

The  Inlet  is  swept  by  tremendous  tides,  and  there  arc  strong  tide 
rips  at  the  entrance  and  at  the  F<>rdamk  beyond  Fort  Kenai.  In 
Tumagain  Arm^  or  Resurrection  Bay,  there  is  a  tide  fall  of  20  and  27 
ft.,  and  the  tide  enters  in  a  huge  bore  or  wave.  Expert  canoemen 
talce  advantage  of  and  ride  the  bore  safely,  and  are  swept  rapidly  on 
their  way  by  its  aid. 

The  natives,  the  Chugachs,  like  the  inhabitants  of  Prince  William 
Sound,  are  Indians  of  Athabascan  stock.  They  are  not  a  canoe  peo- 
ple, and  differ  as  much  from  the  Tlingits  on  one  side  as  from  the  Es- 
quimaux on  the  other. 

Kadiak  and  the  Great  Salmon  Canneries. 

The  dense  forests  of  the  Northwest  Coast  finally  cease  at  the  line 

of  the  Eenai  Peninsula,  and  there  are  but  scattered  groves  on  the 

Kadiak  Islands.    Beyond  that  line  the  shores  are  covered  with  grasses, 

shrubs,  and  thick  mosses,  that,  freshened  by  perpetual  fog  and  rain,  are 

so  brilliantly  and  intensely  green  as  to  dazzle  the  eye.    The  dug-out 

canoe  disappears  at  this  forest  edge,  and  boats  of  sea-lion  or  walrus 

hide  stretched  over  driftwood  frames  replace  them.     The  hidarka,  a 

narrow  shell  pointed  at  either  end,  carries  one  or  two  men,  who  sit 

each  in  a  small  hatch  furnished  with  an  apron  that  fastens  around  his 

body,  and  these  bladders  ride  the  roughest  seas  safely.    Women  and 

children  are  even  packed  beneath  the  oarsmen's  feet  for  ehoH  voyages. 

Lutke  called  these  bidarkans  the  ''  Cossacks  of  the  sea,"  and  Billings 

wrote,  '*  If  perfect  symmetry,  smoothness,  and  proportion  constitute 

beauty,  they  are  beautiful  beyond  anything  that  lever  beheld.''    They 

have  also  the  oomiakj  or  large  open  walrus-hide  boat,  as  a  family  and 

trading,    noe,  and  these  two  craft,  with  slight  modifications,  are  in  use 

from  Kadiak  around  to  the  arctic  coast. 
10 


h 

4 


m 


HI 


138    "TO   WESTWARD"   FROM   SITKA   TO   UNALASKA. 


I'.T  ■%•'  . 


In  1850  three  Rusnian  Bailors  deserted  from  Kadiak  and  reached 
Shoalwater  Bay,  Wash.,  in  bidarkas.  In  1884  two  Danes  went  from 
Kadiak  to  San  Francisco  in  a  bidarka  19  ft.  long,  making  the  1,600 
miles  to  Victoria  in  106  days'  paddling,  with  freqnent  camps  at  night 
along  ths  coast.  In  1892,  a  I'i-ton  schooner  was  blown  off  Karluk  in 
a  storm,  and  the  one  man  navigated  the  2,000  miles  to  San  Francisco  in 
20  days,  a  feat  which  matches  the  bidarkans'  record. 

Lisiansky  was  told  that  the  Kadiak  Islands  were  once  separated  by 
only  the  narrowest  pass  from  the  peninsula's  shore.  A  huge  Kenai 
otter  attempted  to  swim  through  and  was  caught  fast.  Its  struggles 
widened  the  ShelikolT  Strait,  and  pushed  Kadiak  out  to  its  present  pos- 
session. By  tradition,  the  original  inhabitants  were  descended  from  a 
dog.  There  is  one  legend  of  a  man  and  a  dog  being  set  adrift  on  a 
stone  that  finally  turned  to  an  island.  Another  tells  that  the  daugh- 
ter of  a  great  chief  living  north  of  "  the  peninsula  of  Alaxa  "  wab  ban- 
ished in  wrath  with  her  dog  husband  and  whelps.  The  dog  tried  to 
swim  back  but  was  drowned,  and  the  pups  fell  upon  their  grandfather, 
tore  him  to  pieces,  and  ruled  in  his  stead.  Lisiansky  found  the  Ka- 
diakers  in  the  lowest  stages,  sitting  on  the  roofs  of  their  sod  huts  or 
on  the  beach,  like  herds  of  animals,  gazing  at  the  sea  in  stupid  silence. 
The  want  of  oral  intercourse  proved  their  estate,  but  the  courteous  ex- 
plorer said  that  "  their  simplicity  of  character  exceeds  that  of  all  other 
people."  He  built  ice  hills  for  the  Christmas  of  1804,  the  Aleuts  and 
Kadiakers  went  crazy  over  toboganning,  and  the  natives  came  from  the 
farthest  points  to  watch. 

Afognak,  the  northern  island  of  the  group,  was  declared  a  Fish 
and  Timber  Culture  Reserve,  by  Executive  proclamation  of  December 
24,  1892. 

The  steamer  calls  on  both  E.  and  W.  trips  at  the  headquarters  of 
the  N.  A.  C.  Co.  for  the  Kadiak  region  on  Wood  Island  near  St.  Paul. 
The  furs  of  Copper  River  and  the  Kenai  region  reach  those  warehouses. 
There  are  large  ice-houses  on  the  island,  whence  cargoes  were  shipped 
to  San  Francisco  previous  to  the  perfecting  of  the  ice-machine.  The 
owners  of  the  latter  paid  the  Kadiak  company  a  subsidy  to  withdraw 
from  competition,  but  ice  was  regularly  stored  year  after  year,  and  the 
agent  ruled  patriarchally  over  a  model  village,  virtually  surrounded  by 
a  park  and  game  preserve. 

St.  Paal  (population,  495),  on  the  N.  E.  shore  of  Kadiak  Island, 
was  the  first  headquarters;  of  ShelikolTs  and  Baranof 's  fur-trade,  and, 
as  their  early  capital  and  older  home,  was  the  boast  of  the  Russians  in 
Sitka's  better  days.  It  is  the  headquarters  of  the  A.  C.  Co.  in  this 
region,  and  furs  to  the  value  of  ^300,000  are  shipped  yearly.  There 
was  a  garrison  of  U.  S.  troops  here  for  a  few  years  after  the  transfer. 


♦•TO   WESTWARD"    FROM   SITKA   TO   UNALASKA.     139 


The  Greatest  Salmon  Stream  in  the  World. 

KarlQk  is  another  important  port  of  call  on  both  trips  of  the  ninil 
steamer.  Two-thirds  of  the  entire  salmon  pnek  of  Alaska  are  furnished 
by  the  ten  canneries  on  the  Kadiak  Islands,  which  are  almost  entirely 
supplied  from  the  Karluk  River,  This  stream,  on  the  W.  coast  of 
Kadiak,  is  16  miles  long,  from  100  to  600  ft.  wide,  and  less  than  6  ft. 
deep.  These  figures  give  the  dimensions  of  the  solid  mass  of  salmon 
that  used  to  ascend  the  Karluk  to  a  mountain  lake  before  canners  came 
with  traps  and  gill-nets  in  1884.  The  largest  cannery  in  the  woild  is 
at  Karluk.  There  were  1,100  employes  altogetlier  at  the  Karluk  can- 
neries in  1890,  and  over  200,000  cases  of  48  one-pound  tins  contained 
the  3,000,000  salmon  packed.  A  single  haul  of  the  seine  has  beached 
17,000  salmon,  yet  each  ebb  tide  then  left  thousands  of  stranded  fish  to 
die  on  the  banks  and  bars.  The  canners  enjoy  their  monopoly  without 
tax,  license,  or  any  Government  interference.  The  nearest  civil  otKcial 
is  the  U  S.  Commissioner  at  Cnalaska,  700  miles  away,  or  the  customs 
deputy  at  Sand  Point.  Stores,  employes,  and  pack  are  conveyed  to  and 
from  San  Francisco  in  the  canners'  own  vessels,  and  the  hundreds  of 
Chinese,  Greek,  Italian,  Portuguese,  and  Americans  constitute  the  most 
untrammelled  communities  anywhere  under  one  flag  from  May  to  Sep- 
tembpr  of  each  year.  There  is  much  agricultural  land  on  these  islands 
and  cattle  graze  the  year  round,  the  thermometer  never  recording  zero, 
and  snow  lying  on  the  ground  but  for  a  short  time. 

The  Shnmagin  Islands  and  the  Cod  Fisheries. 

Bering  landed  on  this  group  in  1741  to  bury  Shumagin,  one  of  his 
crew ;  and  Steller,  the  naturalist,  who  accompanied  that  expedition  and 
first  classified  the  Pacific  fishes,  mentions  the  cod.  Captain  Cook  and 
other  navigators  referred  to  the  cod ;  and  Senator  Sumner  laid  great 
stress  on  the  value  of  these  cod  banks  in  his  farewell  speech,  thereby 
causing  several  New  England  cod-fishing  communities  to  protest  against 
the  purchase  of  Alaska.  Prof.  Davidson  reported  the  Shumagin  cod 
banks — since  named  the  Davidson  Banks — in  1867,  and  twenty  years 
later  the  Fish  Commission  steamer -4/6<»</'o«s  began  its  work  of  sounding 
and  mapping  the  banks  on  either  side  of  the  Aleutian  Islands.  Over 
10,000  square  miles  of  cod  banks  were  surveyed  in  three  years.  Popoff 
Island^  opposite  Unga,  is  the  headquarters  of  the  cod-fishing  fleet,  and 
th«ire  are  large  warehouses  at  Humboldt  Harbmir  and  Pirate  Cove  for 
salting  and  storing  fish.     The  industry  is  conducted  by  San  Francisco 


urn 


■  I 

i 


140    "TO   WESTWARD"    FROM   SITKA    TO   UNALA8KA. 

fiHh-dcalcrH,  and  the  cod  arc  taken  there  to  be  cured.  The  dry  California 
climate  is  naid  to  be  tlic  reason  for  that  process  not  resulting  as  satis- 
factorily as  on  the  Atlantic  coast.  A  colony  of  Gloucester  tishernien 
rounded  the  Horn  after  the  troubles  on  the  Great  Banks  in  the  Atlantic, 
and  many  otheis  have  followed,  but  the  immediate  profits  of  sealing  over- 
shadow cod-fishing  for  the  time  being.  The  extinction  of  the  fur  seal 
will  give  the  cod-fisheries  a  greater  following  and  importance;  men 
will  depend  upon  more  certain  wages  and  employment,  and  cod  will  in- 
crease in  numbers,  as  each  seal  is  said  to  consume  in  one  summer  cod 
ecpialling  in  value  the  price  of  a  raw  sealskin.  The  pack  of  Shumagin 
cod  for  1800  was  valued  at  ,$500,000,  and  for  all  the  seasons  from  18fi7 
to  185«0  at  a  total  of  more  than  $3,000,000. 

A  conl-miuc  on  Unga  Is'and  furnishes  fuel  for  local  consumption 
here  and  around  Kadiak,  and  the  Apollo  Gold  Mine,  on  the  same 
island,  has  been  a  paying  concern  from  the  start.  The  outer  shores  of 
the  Shumagins  are  haunts  of  the  sea-otter. 

The  Aliaska  Peninsula. 

From  Cook's  Inlet  to  the  beginning  of  the  Aleutian  chain  the  £. 
shore  of  the  Aliaska  Peninsula  is  a  precipitous  mountain  range  rising 
abruptly  from  the  sea.  These  dangerous  shores  are  haimts  of  the  sea- 
otter,  and  in  several  places  salmon  streams  connect  with  mountain  lakes. 
There  are  canneries  and  trading  stations  at  Chignik  Bay,  Wrangell, 
Portage,  and  Pavloff  Bays.  A  railway  13  miles  in  length  connects 
Portage  Bay  with  llerendeeu  Bay  and  the  Bering  Sea  shore,  and  brings 
coal  from  the  mines  owned  by  the  Alaska  Commercial  Company  to  ship- 
ping wharves.  This  is  regarded  as  the  most  valuable  coal  deposit  in 
southern  Alaska. 

Belkofsky,  at  the  foot  of  the  volcano  Mt.  Pavloff,  is  the  centre  of 
the  sea-otter  trade.  The  village  of  185  people  maintains  a  handsome 
Greek  church,  and  there  is  a  Government  school. 

A  century  ago  sea-otters  were  plentiful  along  all  the  Alaskan  coaste, 
but  persistent  hunting  has  nearly  exterminated  them,  and  they  now 
take  refuge  on  the  stormiest  and  most  dangerous  shores,  and  live  in  beds 
of  floating  kelp.  The  hunters  lie  in  hiding  on  the  rocks  foi*  days  in 
order  to  creep  upon  or  surround  their  game,  or  they  may  happen  upon 
an  otter  while  it  sleeps  floating  on  the  water.  Only  natives  were  allowed 
to  hunt  otter,  and  firearms  were  thus  prohibited  on  the  otter-grounds 
until  1878,  when  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury  allowed  white  men  mar- 
ried to  native  women  to  be  considered  natives  in  regard  to  the  privileges 
of  hunting,  which  "  put  otters  at  a  discount  and  women  at  a  premium/' 


THE    ALEUTIAN    ISLANDS. 


141 


Tlic  iiutivc  spoar  and  arrow  are  no  longer  uned.  Stvaniers  and  si'Ihmmi- 
ers  carry  contract  luinters  to  tlie  bent  ottor-proun<ls,  where  they  oanip 
until  called  for  by  those  vesnels.  All  the  tide-water  shores  from 
Prince  WillianrH  So*uid  to  the  Aleutian  Islands  are  otter  grounds,  and 
the  peninsula  coast  near  llelkofsky,  the  outer  Shunia^ins,  and  the 
Sannakh  Islands  are  the  richest  grounds.  Otter-skins  Iiave  increased 
enormously  in  value,  and  a  single  one  of  these  purplish-brown  pelt« 
sprinkled  with  delicate  silver- tipped  hairs  is  worth  from  $150  to  $:^Kt. 
It  is  the  court  fur  of  Kussia  and  China,  and  at  one  time  laws  prevented 
commonerB  from  wearing  it. 


The  Aleutian  Islands. 

The  seventy  islands  of  the  Aleutian  chain  lie  like  natural  stepping- 
stones  from  the  point  of  the  Aliaska  Peninsula  for  1,000  miles  toward 
the  Kamchatka  shore,  and  Attou,  the  last  in  line,  lies  beyond  the  one 
hundred  and  eightieth  meridian  and  within  the  Eastern  hemisphere. 
They  are  of  volcanic  origin,  and  many  craters  still  smoke  along  the 
chain.  Only  one  island,  Uindaskn^  contains  a  white  settlement ;  and 
only  one  island,  Amohitka^  is  seen  from  any  established  route  of  com- 
merce. The  Canadian  Pacific  steaiushipa  often  sight  the  low,  green 
shores  or  see  the  reflected  glow  of  the  volcano  on  Amchitka  on  their 
course  from  Vancouver  to  Yokohama.  They  are  natural  stations  for 
the  proposed  trans-Pacific  cable  route  from  British  Columbia  to  the 
terminus  of  the  Siberian  Great  Northern  telegraph  lines. 

The  islands  are  treeless,  but  covered  with  grass  and  mosses,  and  in 
summer  with  a  wealth  of  wild  flowers.  They  are  capable  of  cultivation, 
and  afford  excellent  pasturage.  The  temperature  varies  little  from  Sit- 
ka's averages,  and  fog  and  rain  are  almost  cimstant  during  the  summer. 
*'  The  wolfs  long  howl "  is  not  heard,  but  several  islands  are  blue  fox 
ranches,  and  great  care  is  taken  to  increase  and  improve  the  (piality  of 
pelts  from  such  preserves.  Over  two  hundred  Idue  fo.x  skins  are 
shipped  from  Attou  each  season.  Cod  banks  border  the  islands,  and 
salmon  and  herring  swarm,  yet  through  improvidence  the  natives  of 
some  remote  villages  barely  manage  to  exist  through  the  winters. 

The  Aleuts  numbered  but  900  altogether  in  1 81»0.  They  are  now  of 
mixed  Russian  descent,  but  the  original  Aleuts  were  a  gentle,  intelligent 
people  when  impressed  by  the  first  fur-traders,  and  in  their  speech  and 
customs  showed  resemblance  to  the  Ainos  of  northern  Japan.  Uaranof 
literally  enslaved  them,  took  1.000  Aleut  hunters  with  their  bidarkas 
to  Sitka  in  1804,  and  often  leased  them  under  contract  to  British  and 
American  trader's  for  otter-hunting  on  the  lower  coast.  Their  damp, 
half  underground  houses  and  the  native  qvass  have  been  sufficient  rea- 
son for  their  rapid  decline  in  numbers.  Despite  the  introduction  of 
foreign  liquors,  only  one  murder  was  committed  by  Aleuts  in  fifty  years. 


':) 


II 


•i 


142 


THE    ALF.UTIAN    ISLANDS. 


They  are  quiik  to  improve  ediicutiotml  advantages,  and  Aleut  women 
of  tlie  better  cImhs  possess  miiny  aeconiplislimeuts.  The  older  women 
weave  ex(piisitely  fine  Ijnskets,  eipir-eases,  ete.,  from  the  <lried  gi-apscs 
and  fibres,  but  tlie  supply  of  this  work  diminishes  each  year. 

Vnhitiik  /ntdud,  the  first  of  the  Aleutians,  contains  two  v(»leanoe.4, 
NhimhHldiii  (H,{)5^  ft.),  n\u\  Poifromnnio,  or  Destruction  (5,R25  ft.). 
Shishaldin  is  the  most  symmetrical  and  perfect  cone  ah>ng  the  whole 
*'  I*acific  liinj?  of  Fire,"  tapering'  evenly  from  sea-level  to  the  sharpest 
point,  from  which  a  smoke  petinant  always  floats.  The  sea  beats  at  its 
base,  and  the  snowy  cone  retains  its  white  covering  to  witlnn  2,(M»() 
ft.  of  the  surf  the  year  round.  It  was  in  eruption  in  I8'2rt,  and  in 
IK'27  oi)ened  a  new  crater  and  rained  aslies  far  and  wide.  The  per|K't- 
ual  mist  and  vapour  in  the  atmosphere  defeat  photographers'  efforts  to 
secure  sharp  negatives  from  a  moving  ship. 

Uiiimak  Pans  and  Akutim.  Pons  are  the  usual  ships'  entrances  to 
Bei'ing  Sea.  Between  the  two  lies  the  island  holding  the  volcanic  peak 
of  Akutmiy  H,'.>HH  ft.  in  height. 

Viialaska,  the  most  important  island  of  the  Aleutian  chain,  is 
mountainous  throughout,  with  the  volcanic  mass  of  Makuahin^  fi,9Cl 
feet,  at  its  northwest  end. 

Dutch  Harbour,  on  the  north  shore,  fronting  Akutan  Pass,  is  the 
headquarters  of  the  North  American  Commercial  Co.,  and  tourists  by 
their  mail  steamer  from  Sitka  wait  here  while  the  vessel  refits  for  the 
return  cruise. 

Captain  Cook  twice  repaired  his  ships  at  this  harbour  in  1778,  and 
here  met  Ismyloff,  connnander  of  the  Russian  factory  on  the  other  side 
of  the  island.  He  gave  the  great  navigator  much  information  us  to 
local  names,  which  the  latter  received  with  caution.  Here  Cook  wrote : 
"They  (the  Aletits)  call  it  by  the  same  name  Mr.  Staehlin  gives  to  his 
great  island,  that  is  Almchka.  Stachtan  Nitada,  as  it  is  called  on  the 
modern  maps,  is  a  name  quite  unknown  to  these  people,  natives  of  the 
islands,  as  well  as  Russians,  but  both  of  theui  know  it  by  the  name  of 
America."  Then  later  Cook  wrote :  "  I  have  already  observed  that  the 
American  continent  is  here  called  by  the  Russians  as  well  as  by  the 
islanders  Atasehka,  which  name,  though  it  properly  belongs  only  to  the 
country  adjoining  Unimak,  is  used  by  them  when  speaking  of  the 
American  continent  in  general,  which  they  know  perfectly  well  to  bv  a 
great  land." 

IHuHuk,  "  the  curving  beach,"  more  commonly  known  as  Una- 
laska,  population  317,  one  mile  below  Dutch  Harbour,  is  port  of  entry 
for  all  ships  passing  in  or  out  of  Bering  Sea  and  the  metropolis  of  all 
the  region  "  to  westward."    The  U.  S.  commissioner  and  deputy-c</^ 


•/ 


THE   ALEUTIAN   ISLANDS. 


143 


lector  reside  here.  The  Greek  church  is  second  in  size  and  importance 
to  the  cathedral  at  Sitka,  and  the  bishop  for  a  time  resided  here.  Be- 
sides the  Russian  parish  school,  theie  are  a  Government  day-school  and  a 
Methodist  mission.  It  is  headquarters  for  the  Alaska  Commercial  Co., 
which  occupies  the  old  fort  of  the  Russian  Company.  The  ships  of  the 
Pacific  arctic  whaling  fleet  call  here  for  water,  coal,  supplies,  and  mail, 
transship  cai-go,  leave  and  receive  news  of  the  ice  line,  the  position,  and 
catch  of  each  whaler.  In  1891,  1892,  and  1893,  during  the  modus  Vi- 
vendi, it  was  headquarters  of  the  United  States  and  British  fleets  en- 
gaged in  the  Bering  Sea  patrol,  and  lines  of  captured  sealers  often 
waited  at  anchor. 

There  is  direct  communication  with  Sitka,  1,250  miles,  by  monthly 
mail  steamer,  from  April  to  October,  and  frequent  c^Timunication  with 
San  Francisco,  2,100  miles,  by  traders'  supply  steamers,  which  take  pas- 
sengers under  certain  conditions. 

Excursions  from  Uiialaska. 

Mrs.  Shepard's  "  Cruise  of  the  Rush  "  shows  how  agreeably  time  may 
be  passed  on  this  northern  isle,  and  suggests  minor  excursions  to  the 
miniature  forest,  the  waterfall,  and  the  cave  near  Dutch  Harbour.  The 
wealth  of  wild  flowers  carpeting  all  the  hillsides  is  the  delight  of  every 
visitor,  and  none  weary  of  the  beautiful  harbour  and  the  landscape 
wealth  around.  Those  travelling  by  the  Sitka  steamer  will  find  them- 
selves the  guests  of  the  N.  A.  C.  Co.  at  their  Dutch  Harbour  establish- 
ment, and  every  arrangement  is  made  for  those  wishing  to  hunt,  fish, 
botanize,  or  climb. 

Bogoslov  volcano,  with  its  sea-lion  rookeries,  is  the  great  point  of 
attraction,  and  a  day's  excursion  to  this  island  of  St.  John  the  Theo- 
logian is  included  in  the  tour  from  Sitka  by  the  X.  A.  C.  Co.'s  vessel. 
It  lies  in  Bering  Sea  some  40  miles  W.  of  Unalaska  harbour,  and  rose 
from  the  waters  in  1796  after  a  day  of  rumbling,  thunder,  and  violent 
explosions,  accompanied  by  much  sulphurous  gas  and  dense  smoke. 
The  rocky  mass  grew  after  a  similar  demonstration  in  1805.  It  con- 
tinued to  grow  for  a  quarter  century,  often  showing  a  light  at  night  and 
darkening  the  sun  with  its  smoke  by  day.  There  wore  disturbances  in 
1883,  the  year  of  Krakatoa't,  great  eruption,  and  showers  of  fine  ashes 
fell  from  concealing  clouds  that  finally  lifted  and  disclosed  a  second 
peak  joined  to  the  first  by  a  sandy  isthmus.  Ship  Rock,  86  ft.  high, 
stood  on  the  isthmus.    The  earthquakes  of  1889-90  left  only  a  thread 


II I 


m 


)| 


144 


THE  BERING   SEA   AND   SHORES. 


m'^s 


of  this  i8thrau8,  and  in  1891  it  liad  sunk  oeyond  soundingB,  Ship  Rock 
had  wholly  disappeared,  and  a  new  peak  was  in  action.  The  upper  parts 
of  these  peaks  have  been  too  hot  for  one  to  climb,  and  the  intense  heat 
and  steam  are  rotting  away  the  rocks,  that  drop  continually.  Sea-lions 
swarm  on  the  rocks  and  ledges  along  shore,  and  myriads  of  birds  have 
their  nests  on  the  warm  rocks.  A  landing  is  usually  made  and  oppor- 
tunity given  for  all  to  gather  specimens  and  souvenirs  of  the  visit,  cook 
eggs  over  the  steam-jet&,  and  put  the  volcano  to  other  practical  uses. 

Opportunity  sometimes  oflfers  for  a  circuit  of  the  island  by  sea,  and 
is  an  excursion  much  enjoyed.  Illakushiii  Ilarboor,  on  the  W.  coast, 
where  (ilottov  and  his  Russians  first  landed  in  1757,  is  some  30  miles 
from  Unalaska.  The  great  mountain  is  easily  climbed  from  that  side. 
Prof.  Blake,  Lieutenant  Hodgson,  and  Dr.  Kellogg,  of  Prof.  Davidson^s 
expedition,  climbed  Maknshin,  5,961  ft.,  September,  1867,  and  found 
"  a  crater  2,000  ft.  broad  by  estimate,  and  filled  with  snow,  in  the  north- 
western portion  of  which  was  an  orifice  giving  v«'ut  to  clouds  of  smoke 
and  sulphurous  fumes." 

The  volcano  of  Vscvidojfy  8,000  ft.,  on  Unimak  Island,  S.  W.  of  Una- 
laska, attracts  attention.  Borka^  on  the  little  island  of  the  same  name 
at  the  N.  E.  end  of  Unalaska  Island,  is  an  Aleut  village  of  as  extraordi- 
nary neatness  and  cleanliness  as  the  show  villages  of  Holland. 


The  Bering  Sea  and  Shores. 

The  Nushegak  and  Kuskokvim  Rivers. 

Bering  Sea  was  described  by  Prof.  Davidson  as  "  a  mighty  reser- 
voir of  cod,"  and  a  large  cod  bank  extends  all  along  the  W.  side  of  the 
great  peninsula.  The  Nushegak  River  reaches  the  sea  at  Bristol  Bay, 
on  whose  shores  are  four  large  salmon  canneries,  and  the  king  salmon 
of  the  Kvichak  and  Nushegak  average  from  40  to  60  pounds*  weight. 
On  this  side  of  the  peninsula  all  the  coast  people  are  Innuits  or  Esqui- 
maux {ces  qui  miaux),  differing  entirely  from  Aleut,  Tlingit,  and  the 
Tinneh  or  Athabascan  tribes  of  the  interior.  They  live  in  under- 
ground huts,  wear  the  loose  parka  or  hooded  smock,  and  skin  boots, 
and  use  dogs  as  draught  animals.  The  Russians  made  few  attempts 
and  had  no  success  in  civilizing  or  Christianizing  them.  There  is  now 
a  Moravian  mit^sion  at  Garmel  on  the  Nushegak,  and  one  at  Bethel  on 
the  Kuskokvim,  with  Government  contract  schools  at  both  places. 

Kmkokvim  Bay  is  the  Fundy  of  this  coast,  the  tide  rising  60  and 
60  ft.,  and  rushing  in  in  a  great  bore  or  wave.  The  Kuskokvim  is  the 
second  great  river  of  the  Territory,  and  navigable  for  900  miles  from 


THE   BERING   SEA   AND  BHORE8. 


145 


its  mouth.  Well-populated  Esquimaux  Tillages  line  its  banks,  and  the 
natives  have  an  abundant  food  supply  in  the  salmon,  white-fish,  seals, 
and  beluga,  or  white  whale.  Prospectors  have  found  gold  on  all  these 
Western  rivers,  and  the  fur-trade  is  considerable,  the  Euskokvim 
country  furnishing  the  finest  black  bear  skins  in  Alaska. 

The  PribyloT  or  Seal  Islands. 

These  four  volcanic  islands  lie  220  miles  N.  W.  of  Unalaska,  veiled 
in  perpetual  mists  and  fogs  of  the  summer  season,  and  ringed  round 
with  drift  ice  in  the  winter.  They  are  treeless,  covered  with  moss  and 
grass,  and  brilliant  wild  flowers  in  their  season.  The  odours  of  the 
rookeries,  where  hundreds  of  thousands  of  seals  gather  annually,  and 
the  slaughter-gi  ounds,  where  millions  of  seals  have  been  killed  for  a 
century,  is  perceived  far  at  sea,  and,  with  the  barking  of  the  animals, 
are  often  the  mariner^s  only  guide  in  those  dense  and  protracted  fogs. 
Only  Government  vessels  are  allowed  to  approach  or  enter  the  har- 
bours. 

St.  Paul,  the  larger  island,  is  12  miles  long  and  from  6  to  8  miles 
wide,  and  its  village  is  the  headquarters  of  the  N.  A.  C.  Co.,  leasing  the 
seal  fisheries.  St.  George,  30  miles  N.,  is  a  little  smaller,  and  between 
them  lie  the  tiny  Otter  and  Walrus  Islands.  The  400  Aleuts  inhabit- 
ing the  islands  are  gathered  in  tidy  villages,  with  Greek  churches  and 
school-houses.  The  islands  are  a  Government  reserve,  and  are  leased 
for  terms  of  twenty  years  by  the  U.  S.  Treasury  Department.  For 
over  a  century  they  have  yielded  more  wealth  than  any  gold-mine,  but 
with  the  settlement  of  the  Northwest  Coast  their  prosperity  has  dimin- 
ished, and  the  seais  will  be  exterminated  &r  ruthlessly  as  those  of  the 
antarctic. 

For  forty  years  Siberian  traders  hunted  for  the  fabled  island  of 
Amik,  where  they  believed  the  "  sea  bears"  lived.  In  1786  Gerassim 
Pribylov  heard  the  barking  through  the  fog  and  found  the  fur-seals' 
summer  home.  Two  million  seals  were  killed  within  a  year,  and  the 
reckless  slaughter  so  nearly  exterminated  the  herds  that  Resanof  or- 
dered killing  stopped  for  five  years,  when  the  rookeries  regained  their 
numbers.  Baranof  used  the  Pribylovs  as  a  bank.  The  sealskin,  then 
valued  at  $1  Mexican,  was  the  unit  of  currency,  and  regularly  taken  in 
payment  for  any  commodity  by  American  traders,  who  exchanged  them 
at  Canton  for  silk  and  tea.  In  1886  the  islands  were  ringed  with  ice 
into  midsummer,  the  seals  could  not  land,  and  the  pups  born  in  the 
surf  died  with  their  mothers.  The  herd  was  again  nearly  extinct,  and 
Baron  Wrangell  stopped  the  killing  until  the  rookeries  had  regained 


II, 


146 


THE  BERING   SEA   AND  SHORES. 


their  numbers.  Sir  George  Simpson  (1844)  found  the  company  taking 
*iOO,OUO  and  300,000  skins  annually,  and  the  market  so  overstocked 
that  the  skins  did  not  pay  for  carrying.  In  similar  situations  before  as 
many  as  700,000  and  1,000,000  skins  were  thrown  into  the  sea  to  keep 
prices  up,  and  in  Baranofs  time  improperly  cured  skins  were  thrown 
away  in  as  great  numbers. 

THE  SEAL  ISLAND   LEASES. 

The  value  and  importance  of  these  islands  were  not  appreciated  at 
the  time  of  the  transfer.  No  protection  was  afforded  in  1868,  and 
seven  concerns  enjoyed  free  sealing  that  season.  In  1869  they  were 
declared  a  Government  reserve  and  guarded  by  soldiers,  and  in  1870 
the  islands  of  St.  Paul  and  St.  George  and  the  seal-fisheries  were  leased 
for  twenty  years  to  the  Alaska  Commercial  Co.,  of  San  Francisco, 
which  had  previously  bought  all  the  buildings  and  the  good-will  of 
the  Russian  American  Fur  Co.  throughout  Alaska.  They  were  per- 
mitted to  kill  100,000  seals  each  year,  80,000  on  St.  Paul  and  20,000 
on  St.  George,  for  an  annual  rental  of  $55,000,  a  tax  of  |2.62^  on 
each  skin,  and  55  cents  on  each  gallon  of  seal-oil.  The  lessees  fur- 
nished fuel  and  certain  rations  to  the  Aleuts,  provided  schools  and  med- 
ical care,  and  paid  them  40  cents  for  each  skin  taken.  A  special  iTeas- 
ury  agent  resided  on  the  islands  each  season  to  protect  Government 
interests,  and  guards  preve?  ted  any  killrng  on  Walrus  or  Otter  Islets. 
At  the  expiration  of  their  lease  the  A.  C.  Co.  had  paid  |5,956,566.67 
to  the  Treasury,  or  4  per  cent  interest  on  the  sum  paid  for  all  Alaska. 

The  A.  C.  Co.  was  believed  to  have  divided  from  $900,000  to  $1,- 
000,000  profits  each  year  between  12  original  stockholders.  Holding 
also  the  lease  of  the  Comandorski  Islands  from  Russia,  they  controlled 
the  sealskin  supply  of  the  world ;  and  having  36  other  trading  stations 
in  Alaska,  they  monopolized  land  furs  as  well.  Salmon  canneries  and 
coal-mines  added  to  the  profits  of  this  most  remarkable  commercial 
company,  whose  preserves  were  not  invaded  nor  monopoly  threatened 
until  toward  the  end  of  the  Pribylov  lease.  By  their  management 
salted  sealskins  rose  in  value  from  $2.50  t  -  $3  in  1868,  to  $10  and 
|18  in  1884,  and  to  $30  in  1890. 

In  1890  a  twenty-year  lease  was  awarded  to  the  North  American 
Commercial  Co.,  of  San  Francisco,  for  an  annual  rental  of  $100,000,  a 
tax  of  $9.62  on  each  100,000  skins  taken,  the  islands  then  to  return 
over  a  million  a  year  to  the  Government,  or  14  per  cent  on  Secre- 
tary Seward's  investment.  Pelagic  sealing  and  rookery  raiding  by  the 
Victoria  fleet  had  so  diminished  the  herd  that  the  leasees  were  only 
permitted  to  take  20,000  skins  the  first  season,  and  for  three  seasons 
while  the  seal  question  was  a  matter  of  diplomatic  discussion  only  the 
few  seals  sufficient  for  a  food  supply  for  the  natives  were  killed. 

CALLORHINUS  URSINFS,  THE  FUR  SEAL. 

For  half  the  year  the  Aleuts  and  foxes  have  their  islands  undis- 
t'-bed.  In  May  the  "  sea  bears  "  swim  through  the  Aleutian  passes 
after  a  six  months'  circuit  of  a  kite-shaped  track  whose  lower  loop  is 


THE  BERING  SEA  AND  SHORES. 


147 


in  the  latitude  of  Los  Angeles.  They  are  followed  as  they  sweep  close 
along  the  Northwest  Coast  by  the  increasing  fleet  of  sealing  schooners, 
whose  hunters  secure  about  one  seal  out  of  ten  shot.  At  the  rooker- 
ies, polygamous  families  herd  in  little  groups  on  the  rocks,  and  the 
patriarch  stays  at  home  with  the  little  black  pups  all  summer,  while 
the  mother  seals  swim  even  20</ miles  in  search  of  their  daily  10  and 
20  pounds  of  cod  or  salmon.  They  are  timid  creatures,  and  at  any 
strange  noise  they  rush  to  the  water.  The  keeping  of  a  pet  dog  lost 
one  Russian  manager  $100,000  in  one  season  by  the  depopulation  of 
a  rookery.    No  fire-arms,  whistles,  or  bells  are  allowed  on  the  island. ' 

The  seal's  fur  is  in  best  condition  immediately  on  arrival,  but  he 
assumes  a  new  coat  in  August,  which  is  in  fine  condition  when  about 
to  leave  at  the  end  of  September.  Only  male  seals  from  two  to  four 
years  of  age  are  killed.  These  bachelors  herd  alone,  and  the  Aleuts 
running  between  them  and  the  water  in  the  early  morning  drive  them 
slowly  to  the  killing-ground,  where  they  are  despatched  by  a  blow  on 
the  head,  quickly  bled,  and  the  skins  taken  to  the  salting-house.  Ex- 
cept as  the  Aleuts  make  use  of  the  flesh  and  blubber,  the  carcass  goes 
to  waste.  The  cool,  moist  climate  prevents  these  killing-groimds  from 
causing  an  epidemic,  and  by  the  next  spring  the  hollow,  bird-like  bones 
are  lost  in  the  grass  and  earth. 

The  salted  skins  are  sent  to  London,  the  fur-market  of  the  world, 
auctioned  off,  and  prepared  for  use.  These  perfect  "  Alaskas  "  com- 
mand first  price,  and  "  Victorias " — the  poachers'  riddled,  torn,  and 
slashed  skins — inferior  prices.  Seven  London  firms,  employing  some 
10,000  workmen,  finish  sealskins  at  a  cost  of  7  shillings  each.  No 
machines  have  been  able  to  supplant  the  many  hand  processes  requir- 
ing the  greatest  skill  and  nicety.  The  skins  are  worked  in  sawdust, 
cleaned,  scraped,  washed,  shaved,  plucked,  given  from  8  to  1 2  coats  of 
dye  with  a  hand-brush,  washed,  and  freed  from  any  remaining  grease 
by  a  bath  of  hot  sawdust  or  sand.  The  Chinese  began  plucking  and 
dyeing  fur-seal  o^er  a  century  ago  to  furnish  an  imitation  of  sea-otter. 
French  furriers  have  insisted  on  the  darker  dyes,  but  the  strong  nut- 
gall  and  acid  render  the  skins  less  durable  than  when  dyed  to  the 
bright  brown  of  ?0  years  ago.  Finished  skins  pay  a  duty  of  20 
3r  cent  on  re-entering  the  United  States. 


THE  BERING  SEA   QUESTION. 

As  sealskins  rose  in  value  and  the  seafaring  population  increased 
on  the  Northwest  Coast,  pelagic  sealing  and  poaching  had  their  rise. 
A  first  poacher  went  from  San  Francisco  in  1872.  A  revenue  cutter 
was  soon  detailed  to  cruise  in  Bering  Sea  and  seize  such  craft.  The 
sealers  then  took  out  British  papers  and  made  Victoria  their  home 
port,  and  by  1879  brought  in  and  reported  12,500  skins  to  the  Cana- 
dian officials.  In  1886  they  brought  in  38,907  skins;  the  rookeries 
were  openly  raided ;  three  Canadian  vessels  were  seized ;  the  British 
minister  at  Washington  protested,  and  the  Bering  Sea  Question  arose. 

In  1887  six  Canadian  vessels  were  seized,  and  in  the  brief  and  argu- 


I 


I 


148 


THE  BERING   SEA   AND   SHORES. 


'■^ 


ment  pr«?pared  by  A.  K.  Dulaney,  IT.  S.  District  Attorney  at  Sitkn,  tl>e 
first  formal  plea  was  made  that  Bering  Sea  was  an  inland  water,  a 
mare  clausum — no  part  of  the  Pacific  Ocean ;  and  that  the  United 
States  and  Russian  boundary  line  from  Uerin<r  Strait  to  Attn  Island 
enclosed  protected  seal  waters  within  which  tlic  United  States  had  com- 
plete jurisdiction  by  virtue  of  rights  obtained  from  Russia. 

In  1890  over  UtO  schooners  trailed  the  Pribylov  herd  up  the  coast ; 
and  while  the  lessees  of  the  islands  could  only  take  20,000  skins,  5o,. 
000  skins  were  brought  into  Victoria.  Schooners  boldly  raided  the 
rookeries,  and  the  Aleuts  battled  with  the  crews. 

June  15,  1891,  after  every  schooner  had  cleared  from  Victoria, 
Great  Britain  agreed  to  the  modm  vivtndi  proposed  by  the  United 
States,  whereby  all  sealing  in  Bering  Sea  by  citizens  of  either  national- 
ity should  ceaf-e.  The  joint  patrol  of  gunlK)at8  and  cutters  warned 
73  and  seized  6  schooners  in  Bering  Sea.  Commissioners  from  the 
United  States  and  Great  Britain  visited  the  islands  and  met  in  confer- 
ence at  Washington,  in  February,  1892.  The  modu,s  vivendi  was  re- 
newed for  another  season,  and  a  treaty  of  arbitration  negotiated.  The 
seizure  of  the  supply  steamer  Coquitlam  off  Xuchek  prevented  the 
Victoria  fleet  from  invading  Bering  Sea  to  any  extent  during  1892. 

The  tribunal  of  arbitration  met  in  Paris,  March  23, 1893.  Its  mem- 
bers were :  Justice  John  M.  Harlan  and  Senator  John  T.  Morgan,  arbi- 
trators for  the  United  States ;  Lord  Hannen  and  Sir  John  Thompson, 
for  Great  Britain ;  Baron  de  Courcelles,  for  France ;  Gregers  Gram, 
for  Sweden ;  and  the  Marquis  Venosta,  for  Italy.  Hon.  John  W.  Fos- 
ter appeared  as  agent  for  the  United  States ;  Hon.  E.  J.  Phelps,  J.  C. 
Carter,  Frederick  Coudert,  H.  W.  Blodgett,  and  R.  Lansing,  as  counsel. 
Hon.  C.  H.  Tupper  appeared  as  agent  for  Great  Britain,  and  Sir  Charles 
Russell,  Sir  Richard  Webster,  Mr.  C.  Robinson,  and  Mr.  W.  H.  Cross 
as  counsel. 

The  arbitration  covers  the  following  points : 

1.  What  exc'i'isive  jurisdiction  in  the  sea  known  as  the  Bering  Sea, 
and  what  exclusive  right  in  the  seal-fisheries  therein,  did  Russia  assert 
and  exercise  prior  and  up  to  the  time  of  the  cession  of  Alaska  to  the 
United  States  ? 

2.  How  far  were  these  claims  of  jurisdiction  as  to  the  seal-fish- 
eries recognized  and  conceded  by  Great  Britain  ? 

3.  Was  the  body  of  water  now  known  as  Bering  Sea  included  in  the 
phrase  "Pacific  Ocean"  as  used  in  the  Treaty  of  1825  between  Great 
Britain  and  Russia,  and  what  right,  if  any,  in  Bering  Sea  was  held  and 
exclusively  exercised  by  Russia  after  said  treaty  ? 

4.  Did  not  all  the  rights  of  Russia  as  to  jurisdiction  and  as  to  the 
seal-fisheries  in  Bering  Sea,  east  of  the  water  boundary,  in  the  treaty 
between  the  United  States  and  Russia  of  the  30th  of  March,  1867,  pass 
unimpaired  to  the  United  States  under  that  treaty  ? 

5.  Has  the  United  States  any  right,  and,  if  so,  what  right  of  pro- 
tection of  property  in  the  fur-seals  frequenting  the  islands  of  the  United 
States  in  Bering  Sea,  when  such  seals  are  found  outside  the  ordinary 
three-mile  limit  ? 


THE   BERING    8EA   AND   8HOKE8. 


149 


Other  Islands  in  Bering  Sea* 

Les8  than  300  Ectrt^i^^nux  manage  to  exist  on  St.  .)ffUthew  and  St. 
Lawrence,  and  nearly  all  the  inhabitants  of  the  latter  island  died  of 
starvation  in  1878-79.  Polar  hears  come  down  to  these  islands  on  the 
ice-floes,  and  their  glossy  winter-killed  skins,  averaging  from  12  to  15 
ft.  in  length,  bring  from  $30  to  $60  in  trade. 

St.  Michael's,  on  an  island  in  Norton  Sound,  70  miles  N.  of  the 
Yukon's  mouth,  is  commercial  headquarters  for  the  Yukon  and  Arctic 
regions,  and  farthest  trading-post  of  the  A.  C.  Co.  Miners  and 
freight  exchange  from  ships  to  light-draught  river  steamers,  a»  with  its 
many  mouths  no  navigable  ship-channel  into  the  Yukon  has  been 
found,  and  bars  extend  for  100  miles  from  shore.  There  are  1,370 
miles  of  navigation  between  St.  Michaels  and  Forty-Mile  Creek,  at  the 
crossing  of  the  international  boundary  line  on  the  Yukon.  There  are  a 
Swedish  mission  and  school  in  Norton  Sound,  and  a  Congregational 
mission  and  school  at  the  large  Esquimaux  village  just  below  Cape 
Prince  of  Wales. 

The  Bureau  of  Education,  in  order  to  provide  a  future  food  sup- 
ply for  the  natives,  has  established  a  reindeer  farm  at  Port  Clarence, 
bringing  the  domesticated  animals  from  the  Siberian  side  and  train- 
ing Innuit  boys  to  care  for  them. 


ary 


Bering  Strait. 

Bering  Strait,  dividing  the  continents  of  Asia  and  North  Amer- 
ica, is  36  miles  wide  between  East  Cape  and  Cape  Prince  of  Wales, 
with  the  three  Diomede  Islands  standing  midway.  The  shallow  water 
and  upward  current  prevent  any  great  icebergs  floating  down  through 
this  strait,  and  the  ice  to  northward  has  rarely  been  seen  to  exceed 
50  ft.  in  height  above  the  water.  There  are  no  glaciers  on  either  the 
Bering  or  Arctic  coast,  hence  no  icebergs,  but  only  packs  and  floes. 
The  Jeannette  passed  through  this  strait  in  1879  and  sunk  off  the 
Siberian  coast ;  and  Nordenskjold  brought  the  Vega  successfully  through 
from  the  Atlantic  in  1880.  Eugene  Sue's  Wanderng  Jew  is  described 
as  standing  on  the  Siberian  promontory  and  conversing  across  the 
waters  with  the  unknown  female  on  Cape  Prince  of  Wales ;  and  tele- 
graph cables  and  railway  bridges  have  been  planned  to  connect  the 
continents  at  this  point. 


'   ■ 


1 1 


150 


IN   THE   ARCTIC   (XJEAN. 


*     In  the  Arctic  Ocean. 

The  Arctic  Circle  is  drawn  across  the  water  just  above  the  capes, 
and  the  true  Land  of  the  Midnight  Sun  is  entered.  The  shores  of  Kot- 
zebue  Sound  are  the  same  marsh  and  tundra,  covered  with  summer  wild 
flowers,  as  seen  along  all  the  coast  from  the  point  of  the  Aliaska  Pen- 
insula. 

The  Pacific  Arctic  is  the  last  whaling-ground  left.  The  Pacific 
whalh.g  fleet,  which  numbered  600  vessels  a  century  ago,  includes  but 
60  now.  There  are  10  steam  whalers,  and  they  obtain  fuel  from  the 
coal-veins  at  Cape  Lisburne,  discovered  and  used  by  Captain  C.  L. 
Hooper  during  his  arctic  cruises  in  search  of  the  Jeannette.  The  aver- 
age whaler  is  a  dilapidated  bark  or  brig,  which  with  difficulty  obtains  a 
crew  and  can  seldom  be  insured.  A  few  of  these  whalers  have  wintered 
off  the  mouth  of  the  Mackenzie  River,  in  order  to  be  on  the  ground  in 
the  spring.  The  crew  go  on  shares,  each  man  on  board  taking  a  per- 
centage of  the  season's  catch  on  his  return  to  San  Francisco.  Oil  is 
not  the  prize  sought  now,  and  the  bowhead,  or  Kadiak  whale,  ranks  the 
sperm,  since  whalebone  commands  i|^6  a  pound,  and  a  single  bowhead 
yields  from  $5,000  to  $7,000  in  bone.  The  whalers  trade  with  Sibe- 
rian and  Alaskan  natives,  and  a  revenue  cutter  patrols  the  Arctic  each 
season  to  see  that  liquors  and  fire-arms  are  not  introduced;  to  aid  and 
rescue  whalers  when  necessary ;  to  give  them  communication  with  the 
world  below,  and  to  administer  justice. 

Point  Barrowj  named  by  Beechey  in  1826,  which  corresponds  in 
latitude  to  the  North  Cape  of  Norway,  is  600  miles  E.  of  Bering  Strait, 
and  the  most  northern  point  of  Alaska  and  of  the  continent.  A  U.  S. 
signal  station  was  maintained  there  for  two  years,  as  one  in  a  chain  of 
Arctic  stations  maintained  by  European  governments  for  magnetic  and 
m-  .eorological  observations.  A  refuge  station  was  next  built,  50  out 
of  87  whalers  having  been  wrecked  near  that  point,  and  the  crews  of 
12  whalers  preferring  to  go  down  with  their  ships  in  1877,  than  to 
chance  the  slower  death  in  small  boats  or  on  shore.  A  Government 
school  and  Presbyterian  mission  was  built  in  1 890  to  care  for  the  Es- 
quimaux settled  around  the  station.  It  is  visited  and  revictualled  an- 
nually by  the  revenue  cutter. 

A  first  pleasure  tourist  visited  the  arctic  whaling  ground  in  1891,  a 
New  York  yachtsman  paying  $26,000  for  the  three  months'  cruise  In 
a  Japanese  steamer  chartered  at  Yokohama.    Its  presence  created  almost 


IN   THE   ARCTIC   OCEAN. 


151 


as  great  an  excitement  as  the  Confederate  privateer  Shenandoah  when 
it  appeared  among  the  New  Bedford  fleet  in  1866,  captured  and  burned 
36  whalers,  and  sent  three  to  San  Francisco  as  cartels.  The  Shenan- 
doah made  but  one  port  in  the  thirteen  months  after  leaving  (ilasgow. 
It  was  the  only  vessel  that  carried  the  Confederate  flag  around  the 
world,  and  carried  it  for  six  months  after  A|)pomattox.  It  visited  every 
ocean  save  the  Antarctic,  carried  its  anchors  at  its  bows  for  eight  months, 
ran  38,000  statute  miles,  and  never  lost  a  chase.  A  Melbourne  whaler 
warned  and  saved  many  Yankee  ships,  and  the  Shenandoah  hunted  for 
the  Australian  ship  in  vain,  else  Shenandoah  claims  might  have  aggre- 
gated more  than  $6,000,000. 

Demarcation  Point,  600  miles  E.  of  Point  Barrow,  is  the  inter- 
national boundary  line,  where  "the  meridian  line  of  the  141st  degree  in 
its  prolongation  reaches  the  Frozen  Ocean." 

Beyond  lie  the  Northeast  and  the  Northwest  Passage,  in  search  for 
which  two  generations  of  explorers  sacrificed  their  lives.  The  country 
"  beyond  the  north  wind  "  still  lures,  and  scientist,  marinei',  and  fireside 
tourists  dream  of  the  place  where  latitude  stops,  longitude  centers, 
time  ends  and  time  begins,  and  where  the  sun  circles  around  the  sum- 
mer sky  brooding  above  the  pole. 


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BOOKS  OF  REFERENCE. 


The  following  list  contains  the  more  easily  accessible  books  con- 
cerning Alaska  and  the  Northwest  Coast : 

Earlt  Voyages. 

Beechet,  F.  W.  Narrative  of  a  Voyage  in  H.  M.  S.  Blossom  in  the 
Tears  1825-'28.     London,  1831. 

Belcher,  Sir  Edward.  Narrative  of  a  Voyage  in  II.  M.  S.  Sulphur 
during  the  Years  l836-'42.     London,  1848. 

Cook,  James.  The  Account  of  his  Third  and  Last  Voyage  in  the 
Years  1776-'80.     By  James  King. 

Dixon,  George.  Voyage  around  the  World  in  l'786-'88.  London, 
1789. 

Lanosdorff,  George  H.  VON.    Voyages.     London,  1818. 

La  Perouse,  Jean  Francois.    Voyage  around  the  World.     London, 

1798. 

LisTANSKi,  Imri  Feodorovich.  Voyage  around  the  World,  1808-6. 
London,  1814. 

LuTKE,  Feodor  Fetrovich,     Voyage  autour  du  Monde.    Paris,  1886. 

Marchand,  Etienne.  Voyage  around  the  World.  Writti  oy  C.  P. 
Fleurien. 

Meares,  John.     Voyages.     London,  1790. 

PooLE.    Queen  Charlotte  Islands.    London,  1872. 

PoRTLOCK,  Nathaniel.    Voyage  around  the  World.     London,  1789. 

Simpson,  Sir  George.    Narrative  of  a  Journey  around  the  World. 

London,  1847. 

(Sir  George  Simpson  wa-<  Oovemor  of  the  Hudson  Bay  Company,  and  in 
I840-'43  visited  all  ttie  stations  of  his  company,  the  Spanish  colonies  in  Cali- 
fornia, the  Russian  settlements  in  North  America,  and  returned  to  Europe 
by  way  of  Siberia.) 

Vancouver,  George.  A  Voyage  of  Discovery  to  the  North  Pacific 
Ocean  and  around  the  World,  performed  in  the  Years  1790-'96. 
London,  1798. 

(Prof.  Dall  has  called  attention  to  the  fact  that  there  is  no  biography  of 
Vancouver.  The  date  of  bis  birth  is  not  known.  He  was  midshipman  with 
Captain  Cook  on  his  third  and  last  voyage.  While  superintending  the  publi- 
cation of  his  vovages  in  London,  Vancouver  was  challenged  by  a  young  oflSoer 
whom  he  had  aisciplined  during  a  cruise.  Old  and  feeole,  he  was  unwilling 
and  unable  to  meet  him,  nor  did  be  think  the  exercise  of  naval  authority  war- 
11 


154 


Bf)OK8   OF   REFERENCE. 


ranted  a  duel  bh  (iefcncu.  IIIh  aHMilnnt  niPctiiiK  hitn  in  Bond  Street  after  the 
refusal  to  fluht.  Htruck  Vancouver  In  the  face  and  publicly  Ineultef]  him.  The 
old  ofllcer,  numlliated  and  chagrined,  failed  rapidly,  and  died  May  10, 170H, 

iU8t  before  hit*  voyagcH  were  publinhed.  lie  Ih  buried  in  the  churchyard  at 
lam,  near  Richmond,  Wurrey.  Dr.  IMll  han  found  reference  to  the  challenffe 
to  the  duel  in  a  Btory  of  CharleB  Reade,  "  What  haw  l)ecome  of  Lord  f'amel- 
ford'H  Body  ?  "— Harper's  Weeltly,  May  6,  187«). 


Von  Stakhlin,  J. 
don,  1774. 


Account  of  the  New  Northern  Archipelago.     Lon- 


(Thls  Ih  the  flret  publiehed  account  of  Bering's,  Tchirikow's,  and  other  Rub- 
BJan  discoveries  on  the  coast  of  North  America.) 


Wilkes,  Charlks,  U.  S.  N. 
dition,  1888-'42. 


Narrative  of  the  U.  S.  Exploring  Expe- 


Badlam,  Alexander.    The  Wonders  of  Alaska.    San  Francisco,  1889. 

Balloit,  Matuuin  M.     The  New  El  Dorado.     Boston,  1888. 

Bancroft,  Hubert  Howe.  Works.  History  of  the  Northwest  Coast, 
vols,  xxvii  and  xxviii.  History  of  Washington,  Idaho,  and  Montana, 
vol.  xxxi.  History  of  British  Columbia,  vol.  xxxii.  History  of  Alaska, 
vol.  xxxiii. 

Beardhlek,  Lester  A.  Letters  in  Forest  and  Stream  in  1879,  signed 
"  Piseco."    Report  on  Affairs  in  Alaska,  Congressional  Document. 

Bell,  W.  H.  The  Stickeen  River  and  its  Glaciers.  Scribner's  Monthly, 
April,  1879. 

Briqgs,  Horace.     Letters  from  Alaska.     Buffalo. 

CoLLis,  Mrs.  Septima  M.    A  Woman's  Trip  to  Alaska.    New  York, 

1890. 

Dall,  William  H.  Alaska  and  its  Resources.  Boston,  1870.  The 
Coast  Pilot  of  Alaska,  1883.  Partial  List  of  Books,  Maps,  and  Charts 
relating  to  Alaska  and  the  Adjacent  Region.  (A  quarto  volume  of  210 
pages,  cataloguing  the  literature  of  the  region  down  to  the  year  1882.) 

Davidson,  George.    Coast  Pilot  of  Alaska.     1869. 

Dawson,  George  M.  I^Ionograph  on  the  Queen  Charlotte  Islands  in 
Annual  Report  of  Dominion  Geological  Survey. 

Elliott,  Henry  W.  Monograph  on  the  Seal  Islands.  Census  Report, 
1880.     Our  Arctic  Province. 

FiNCK,  Henry  T.     The  Pacific  Coast  Scenic  Tour. 

Glave,  E.  J.     Pioneer  Paok-Horses  in  Alaska. 
September  and  October,  1892. 

Greenhow,  Robert.     The  Northwest  Coast. 

(Mr.  Greenhow  was  Librarian  of  the  Department  of  State  at  the  time  the 
Oregon  question  rooe  to  prominence,  ana  his  book  is  almost  the  argument 
of  the  United  States  case,  containing  a  resumi  of  all  the  early  history  of 
the  region.) 

Hallock,  Charles.    Our  New  Alaska.    New  York,  1886. 
HiNE,  C.  C.    Alaska  Illustrated.    Milwaukee,  1889. 


New  York,  1890. 
Century  Magazine, 


;!hart8 
)f  210 

1882.) 


Ids  in 


bport, 

190. 
Izine, 


the 
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THE  ROUTE  OF  TH 


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yiribdlaa»^i^yw 


UMMUMUMtba- 


^ 


BOOKS   OF    REFERENCE. 


155 


(Contains  a  sketch  of  life  at  Sitka 
(A  brief  sketch  of  the  first  mission 


Irving,  Washington.    Astoria. 

during  Baranof  s  time.) 
Jackson,  Rev.  Sheldon.    Alaska. 

work.) 

Karb,  H,  W.  Seton.  The  Shores  and  Alps  of  Alaska.  London,  1887. 
Proceedings  of  Royal  Geographic  Society,  vol.  ix,  1887. 

Matne,  R.  C.  Four  Years  in  British  Columbia  and  Vancouver's  Is- 
land.   London,  1862. 

Milton,  Cheadle.    The  Northwest  Passage  by  Land.     London,  1865. 

MuiR,  John.  Picturesque  California,  Oregon,  Washington,  and  Alaska. 
J.  Deming.     New  York  and  San  Francisco. 

NiBLACK,  Albert  P.,  U.  S.  N.  The  Coast  Indians  of  Southern  Alaska 
and  Northern  British  Columbia.  Report  of  U.  S.  National  Museum 
1887-'88. 

NiCHOLLS,  Henrt  E.,  U.  S.  N.     U.  S.  Coast  Pilot  of  Alaska.     1892. 

Petroff,  Ivan.  Population  and  Resources  of  Alaska.  (A  volume  of 
the  Eleventh  Census  Report,  1890.)  Internal  Commerce  of  the  United 
States.  (Published  by  Bureau  of  Statistics,  U.  S.  Treasury  Depart- 
ment.)   U.  S.  Census  Report,  1880,  and  U.^  S.  Census  Report,  1890. 

(Mr.  Petroff  gathered  materials  for  H.  H.  Bancroft's  History  of  the  North- 
west Coast  and  Alaska,  and  wrote  a  part  of  the  History  of  Alaska  in  thht 
series  down  to  the  year  1841.) 

PiERPOiNT,  Edward.    From  Fifth  Avenue  to  Alaska.    New  York,  1883. 

Rat,  R.  C,  U.  S.  N.  The  Coast  of  British  Columbia.  U.  S.  Hydro- 
graphic  Office,  1891. 

Reclus,  ^lisee.    Geographic  Universelle,  Boreal  America,  vol.  xv. 

Reid,  Henry  Fielding.  Studies  of  Muir  Glacier.  National  Geo- 
graphic Magazine,  March,  1892. 

Rollins,  Alice  Wellington.    Palm  to  Glacier.    New  York,  1892. 

Russell,  Israel  C.  An  Expedition  to  Mt.  St.  Elias.  In  National 
Geographic  Magazine,  May,  1891,  and  Thirteenth  Report  of  Director 
of  U.  S.  Geological  Survey.  (See  also  Century  Magazine,  April,  1891, 
and  June,  1892.) 

ScHWATKA,  Frederick.  Along  Alaska's  Great  River.  New  York, 
1886. 

SoiDMORE,  Eliza  Ruhamah.  Alaska :  Its  Southern  Coast  and  the  Sit- 
kan  Archipelago.  Boston,  1885.  Alaska,  in  Reports  of  Director  of 
the  Mint,  1883  and  1884.  Monograph.  Census  Report,  1890. 
Harper's  Weekly,  August  30,  1884,  March  28,  1885,  May  14  and 
July  23,  1892.  Century  Magazine,  July,  1891.  Wide  Awake, 
March,  1885.  Northwest  Magazine,  June,  1891.  New  York  Times, 
October,  1884.     St.  Louis  Globe-Democrat,  1883  and  1884. 

Sessions,  Francis  C.  From  Yellowstone  Park  to  Alaska.  New  York, 
1890. 


■Mi 


Mft^e^^ 


156 


BOOKS   OF   BEFEBENOE. 


Shiphird,  Ibabu.    The  Cruise  of  the  Rush.    San  Francisco. 
Sproat.    Scenes  and  Studies  of  Savage  Life.    London,  1868. 
Swam,  Jamks  0.    The  Northwest  Coast.    New  York,  1867. 
St.  John.    The  Sea  of  Mountains.    London,  IS11. 
Victor,  Mrs.  Francks  Fullrr. 

(Mrs.  Victor  assisted  in  gathering  materials  for  H.  H.  Bancroft's  histories, 
and  wrote  the  volumes  pertaining  to  Oregon.) 

Wardman,  Oboror.    a  Trip  tc  Alaska.    Boston,  1884. 

WiCBB,  Seward.    Yellowstone  Park  and  Alaska.    New  York,  1890. 

Wbllcomi,  Henry.    The  Story  of  Metlakahtla.    New  York,  1887. 

Wells,  Ensign  Roger,  U.  S.  N.,  and  John  W.  Kellt.  English-Eskimo 
and  Eskimo-English  Vocabularies.  U.  S.  Bureau  of  Education — Cir- 
cular of  Information  No.  2 — 1890. 

Whtmper,  Frrderick.  Travel  and  Adventure  in  the  Territory  of 
Alaska.    London,  1868. 

WiNTHROP,  Thkodorb.    Canoe  and  Saddle. 

Wood,  C.  E.  S.  Among  the  Tlingits  in  Alaska.  Century  Magazine, 
July,  1882. 

Woodman,  Abbt  M.    Picturesque  Alaska.    Boston,  1889. 

Wright,  O.  Frbdrriok.  The  Ice  Age  in  North  America.  New  York, 
1888. 


